Healing
by danglove elle
Summary: Heartbroken Kaoru is forced to go back to Japan. Unknown to her, she is trapped into an engagement. She struggles to stay sane and not fall under the spells of sweet seduction. SaitouKaoru
1. Back and Numb

Disclaimer: Do I need to write this? It's getting frustrating…haha. I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Hello, this is my second fanfic, my first fanfic is not doing so well, I can't find it anywhere in the website…could it be that they deleted it? I hope you all find this interesting and let me know what you guys think!**

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!**

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**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 1**

Sagara Sanosuke smacked Kaoru's head once again. "You're so naïve! Why do you always pick the wrong people to date?"

Kaoru continued crying, sniffing violently into the hankerchief he had given to her. She looked up slightly, and continued her sobs.

"Yeah, Yeah! Busu, why are you always so stupid!" Yahiko chimed in, standing next to Sanosuke.

"Hey! Stop scolding me you idiots! I am feeling very bad right now…you guys are suppose to console me…not making me feel worse!" Kaoru cried, sniffing harder into the hankerchief.

Sano and Yahiko looked at each other guiltily.

"Well, jou-chan…you can't blame us for scolding you. You are like this ever since you started dating…you always pick the worse guys…"

"Yeah…like that Aoshi…" Yahiko added.

"I do not always pick the wrong guys!"

"You do!" Yahiko and Sano said together.

"And Aoshi, he is not that bad…he just decided that he like my best friend more…that's all…you can't force people to be with you when his heart is obviously with someone else…"

"Yeah, that is what is wrong with all your relationships, jou-chan! I noticed that you always love the guy you are in the relationship with more than he loves you! And maybe they don't even love you at all! You give too much Kaoru…sometimes people just take it all for granted, and so happens that every guy you like turn out to be like that!"

Kaoru kept quiet. The things that Sano was saying was beginning to make sense…maybe she appeared too available. The guys she dated…she realized…were never as mad about her as she was for them. Sano and Yahiko had been nagging at her forever, but she never listened to them…she felt that she should give all she could in a relationship. But not her virginity. Never. Then, something snapped in her mind….maybe all the guys left her because they wanted sex and she refused them…

"Sano…?"

"Yeah, jou-chan?"

"Do you think…maybe…maybe…the guys dump me because I won't give in to sex?"

"Well…"

"Answer me Sano."

"Well…I suppose…a lot of guys wants that, but not all…maybe you just haven't meet the right person jou-chan…"

"How about you Sano, would you break up with a girl just because she doesn't want sex?"

"Well…if I want to and she refused me, I'll respect her decision and wait til she is ready. I most definitely won't just break up with her because of that. Plus, you know me…I don't go into relationships that easily…unlike you, when you fall, you fall hard."

"Oh…you're right..and you know, my break-up with Aoshi is not all why I came to see you guys…"

"What else do you have to say?" Yahiko asked, quite bored. Kaoru being dumped by men was a 'usual' thing.

"I'll be leaving soon, to Japan after I finished this final year in the university…"

"Why?" Sano asked.

"My father wants me to go back to Japan to get my degree and to receive further training in medicine…you know how he is, Sano. So I'll be leaving next month."

"But busu! Without you here…who is going to annoy us? We'll be bored to death you know!" Yahiko whined.

"No, you won't be bored to death! When I go back, it does not mean that we won't see each other anymore right? We'll still keep in touch. And I intend to not be so stupid anymore…"

"Oh…does that mean that you'll start being mean to guys and not be so serious in relationships?" Sano asked.

"No, it does not mean that! I'll still be like this, and I'll still be serious in relationships, just that I'll be more careful in what kind of man I am going into a relationship with…"

"Oh, like as if it is going to help!"

"Whatever Sano…damn I am so tired with all the crying…I am really in love with him you know. He is a very easy man to fall in love with…"

"Oh no you don't get teary again, jou-chan. We went over that an hour ago!"

"Okay, okay…I'll be going now. I still have class tomorrow…damn."

Kaoru stumbled out of Sano's apartment and waved weakly at the two of them, with them staring after her worriedly. She rushed down the stairs with her heart very heavy. Someone dumped her…again. Maybe she just isn't attractive enough…or maybe she just did not know how to hold on to a man. But she was determined that she won't change herself to suit others, she'll just be herself and one day…one day….she'll find someone out there for her…just her.

Kaoru Kamiya was not unattractive as she thought she was. In fact, she was very beautiful with long, silky black hair that reached her waist, bright blue eyes and a soft sensual mouth. You might not describe her as sexy, but her face has this wholesomeness so refreshing that you'll turn to stare when you walked past her. Her smile was pure and gentle. Kaoru was very feminine indeed. She was slim with a figure that curved at all the right places, but she does not dress outrageously. It was just not her. Many times she had the urge to dress like how other girls her age dressed like, but than…she just could not bring herself to wear such clothes.

Kaoru was not just beautiful , she was also the top student in her all classes in the University. She was studying medicine, even though she wanted so much to study art. She was also a very talented artist. Her father, back in Japan, however disapproved of what she enjoyed. He told her that she'll never make money with art, and it was not a stable job. Kaoru obeyed him and so here she was…studying medicine to become a doctor…just like her father. She continued painting, her father allowed this as long as she does not take it up seriously. Her mother was a typical Japanese housewife, obedient, gentle and responsible. Kaoru disliked her mother to be this way…not that she hated her or anything…she just dislike how her mother never dared to defy her father at all.

She had a terrible quarrel with her father the day he called her, telling her his decision. He was the administrator at the hospital he was working for, quite a high position. He wanted her to come and work there as well. He had paved a path for her…he had planned everything…her life, her decisions. She turned the lock of the door to her apartment…she was exhausted. **_Well…what to do? I can't do anything…I'll sleep first, damn…._**

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The next day, Kaoru did her best to avoid Aoshi at all cause. She was not ready to face him…or her best friend, Megumi. She was not angry at all, she completely understands and did not hold any grudges against them. She did not blame Megumi at all, even if she had something to do with the breakup…she blocked out all the thoughts of the possibility of Aoshi and Megumi getting together when she was still his girlfriend. She had to learn to let go, besides, she can't blame Megumi for falling in love with her ex-boyfriend…some things just could not be controlled and like she had said, Aoshi was a very easy man to fall in love with.

Her whole body was numb, but she still took notes and asked questions. Aoshi was in all her classes, and they had managed to avoid each other easily. It was not a bitter break up, Kaoru was used to it…she had learn not to cry like she did the first few times she was dumped. All she did was asked why…and she knew that once Aoshi had made a decision…there was no moving him. **_Ah…life goes on…_**

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"Do you think I should go and talk to Kaoru? I feel so bad…" Megumi asked Aoshi. They were standing far away, observing Kaoru.

"Maybe you should leave her alone for a while…I think she needs time…"

"But, what if she thinks I betrayed her? Well…I sort of did…but it can't be helped! I am really in love with you…"

"Yes I know, and I love you too…I do not know what she thinks. But I know Kaoru, she is a very caring and giving person. She may be too kind-hearted…she won't hate you, that I know for sure."

" You seem to notice a lot about her…."

"Of course I do, we were together once for Christ's sake.."

"But…I am still worried. I want to be there to comfort her, that's what best friends do. But I can't do that, I don't have the courage to do that…I don't even know if she still consider me as her best friend…"

"Just leave her alone for a while, but be sure to talk to her too…after everything settles…"

"Okay…"

Suddenly Kaoru turned and saw them looking at her, she just looked back and smiled. What else could she do? Go over and scream at them? Or stare back fiercely? No, she wouldn't do that. All she can do now was to hope that they have a good relationship.

* * *

"Did you see that? She smiled at us!" Megumi exclaimed when Kaoru stalked away into another direction.

"Yeah…"

"Does that mean she is not angry at us?'

"I don't know…"

* * *

Most of her belongings were packed and ready, a part of it will be sent off to Japan first, then, she carry all the rest back at the end of the term. She took down all the paintings she had drawn on the walls and decided that she'll give them to her friends. Sano and his brother, Yahiko…Megumi and Aoshi…

The door bell rang.

"Wait a moment please!"

Kaoru waited, her heart was beginning to pound faster. She'll try not to make it awkward. They can all be friends…

Megumi answered the door finally. She was shocked to see Kaoru. For a moment she just stared at Kaoru and Kaoru just smiled back warmly. "Hello Megumi."

Megumi finally found her voice. "Kaoru! I am so sorry I didn't call you and I am sorry Kaoru, really I am…for everything…"

Kaoru laughed softly, she waved her hand lightly, showing her that she was all right. "I am not angry…you don't need to be sorry. Things happen sometimes..when we don't want them to happen, so I don't blame you at all. I am just here to…"

"Megumi, who's there?" Aoshi called from the inside. He came out, his hair messy and dressed in a t-shirt and long pants. He stopped when he saw Kaoru and approached them silently.

Kaoru nodded at him and continued. "As I was saying…I am just here to tell you guys that I'll be leaving to Japan next week. And I want to say good-bye before I go." She held up two paintings wrapped in thick paper. "And, I wanted to give you two something before I go."

Kaoru handed Megumi the paintings and Megumi took it, still staring at Kaoru with shock. "Thank you…"

The couple just looked at Kaoru, not knowing what to say. Kaoru felt uneasy with the tensed silence and quickly said: " I better get going now…bye…" She smiled again before she closed the door behind her.

Megumi and Aoshi stood at the door, silent.

"She is definitely not angry at you…" Aoshi said.

"She is not angry at you either…and she was the one who came to visit me…I didn't even know she was leaving!"

"Yeah, she had a lot of courage in her to come here tonight, we owe her an apology …and we should be the ones who should try to talk to her first. Things had been awkward…she is the nicest person I know."

"I agree…" Megumi said, feeling very guilty and sad.**_I had betrayed Kaoru and yet she came with a smiling face and bearing gifts!_**

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"Jou-chan!"

Kaoru turned around and saw Sanosuke and Yahiko running towards her.

"Hey, you two."

"Don't you even dare going in there without saying good-bye…" Yahiko grumbled.

Kaoru laughed, "I thought that you two weren't coming anymore…"

"Of course we'll come, you stupid." Sano scolded, smacking her head playfully.

Kaoru laughed again, "You two take care of yourselves and stay out of trouble. Don't get too drunk Sano, and you Yahiko, concentrate more on your studies brat!"

"Busu! No one is as smart as you, you know?"

"And I don't get drunk that easily!"

"Whatever…and I wish you two all the best. Keep in touch, ya?"

Sano and Yahiko laughed. "Of course."

"…**.Flight 467 to Japan…ready for boarding…"**

"I need to go now, take care!"

"Yeah, you too.." Sano stepped towards Kaoru and crushed her hard into his arms. Yahiko hugged her next. Kaoru's eyes begun to water. Sniff "I better go before I cry…"

Kaoru smiled at them again, picking up her bag.

"Wait!"

Kaoru looked up and saw Megumi and Aoshi rushing towards them.

"Wait, Kaoru!" Megumi shouted.

Kaoru stopped and waited for them to come to her. Megumi approached her quietly, with Aoshi following from behind.

"Kaoru, I am sorry."

"I told you already, you don't need to apologise for anything…"

"But…"

"I am not angry, and I don't blame you or Aoshi at all."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Can we still be friends?"

"Of course, our friendship can't be ruined just because of this…after all we had gone through together…"

"Yeah…I am glad that you still want to be my friend."

"Me too…"

Megumi held up a package. "This is from me and Aoshi…our farewell present."

"Thank you."

Megumi smiled sadly.

"I better get going now, I don't want to miss my flight…"

Aoshi stepped forward. "Take care, Kaoru."

"Thank you, you too…Aoshi."

Kaoru smiled and waved at all of them before she passed through the security.

* * *

**A week later, Japan**

Kaoru glanced at her watch, it was still early…she'll have a lot of time before her first lesson. But than,, she was ready. Someone came knocking at her door.

"Kaoru!" her mother called, "Breakfast is ready…"

"Okay…" Kaoru replied lamely. She did not want breakfast, she did not want to be here at all. Kaoru stared into the mirror and saw the dark circles under her eyes. Her heart sank lower. She couldn't sleep last night. She was not able to think of anything clearly eversince she came back to Japan. The only good thing about moving back here was her been too busy to think about her heart break with Aoshi. She had wanted to rent an apartment to herself…not to stay at home under the eyes of her father. But he had insisted…she couldn't disobey.

She wanted to destroy everything that was in the room and just break away…away from her father…away from this wall. In frustration, she picked up a book and tossed it angrily at the door. Her mother gasped. "Kaoru! Are you all right in there?"

Kaoru ignored her, picked up her sling bag and walked out of her room with her head held up high. Her mother was outside her room, frowning.

"Kaoru? What's wrong with you these days?"

"Nothing is wrong…I am going to class…"

"How about breakfast?"

"I am not eating."

"Not eating?"

Kaoru just walked away. Then, she saw her father sitting solemnly at the dinning table, sipping at his coffee. He glanced up at her and turned back to his coffee.

Kaoru glared at him and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her.

"Anata, you just let her walk out like that?"

"Let he be…"

"But…"

'It's all right, she'll calm down in a few days."

* * *

Kaoru cycled up to the University Of Tokyo. She could not believe that the university was only ten minutes away from her house. Her father had certainly planned out everything nicely. She growled under her breath and stopped when she noticed other students arriving. She glanced at her watch again, she still have forty-five minutes before her first class begins.

_**I'll go check out the art courses first…**_

That thought lifted her heart a little. Only thing was that she did not know where the art courses are. Then, she saw a girl ride up beside her. The girl was small but her presence lifted the gloominess somehow, her black her hung just past her ear and an unusual braid drifted from the back of her head well past the thin tires of her bicycle. The small girl turned to look at Kaoru curiously.

"Hi! I didn't see you at the opening ceremony yesterday…you new?"

'Yeah, I just came here from America."

"Oh, no wonder you have that weird accent to your Japanese…"

Kaoru laughed. "Could you tell me where the art classes are held?"

The girl glanced at her watch. "Yeah, I still have time before my class starts. I'll bring you there. Every different course have a single building to itself…so it's quite far from here, you need your bicycle."

"Okay."

On their way to the art classes, Misao chatted cheerfully. She was bursting with energy.

"I am Makimachi Misao, you?"

"Kamiya Kaoru."

"So, you study art?"

"Actually no. I just really like art and painting. I am actually studying medicine."

"Oh,really?! I am studying medicine too! It's my first year in University, so I am really excited. You in first year too?"

"No, I completed my first seven years in America, just coming here for further studies."

"Wow! So how is it like? Studying medicine I mean…"

"It's all right. You just need to pay attention in class, that matters a lot."

"What else? Give me some more tips, Kaoru-chan!"

Kaoru laughed at how she had called her. It was cute. "Sure, definitely. If you need help in anything, feel free to ask me."

"Thank you!" Misao exclaimed gratefully. She glanced at her wrist watch. "Opps, my class starts in five minutes. I need to go. The art building is the white one after you turn left, there is a sign, you'll find it."

"Thanks, Misao."

"No problem man, maybe we can go out and eat lunch together today."

"Sure."

"Than we'll meet at the entrance at lunch break?"

"Okay."

"Deal, see you later!"

Misao waved before she rushed off speedily on her bike.

Kaoru cycled on. She still had time. Then she saw it, the white building. The Art Building.

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She parked her bicycle in front of the building. It was peacefully quiet around there. It seemed to her that none of the art students had arrived yet. She walked up the shallow steps and saw that the entrance door was already opened.

_**Someone is here already…**_

"Hello?" she called into the building. Silence greeted her. Kaoru walked on, admiring the art pieces on the walls. Then, she saw a room with its door wide opened. She walked in and realized that it was a large art studio. It was empty. There were numerous paintings everywhere…on the floor…and on the walls. And, an unfinished piece was put on an wooden stand. It was a painting in oil canvas of a nude woman.**_ It is going to be a masterpiece…_**

"What are you doing in here?"

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**hehehe…who's that who caught Kaoru looking around? Read more to find out! I know it is so boring now…just please review! And let me know what you think! **

**Ja ne ! MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

**KatsunoCZ**


	2. Art Talent

Disclaimer: Okies, here goes….I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Thank you reviewers C.G Forever is now, JBella , gaby (hyatt, I hope you guys like this chapter!**

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**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

"_**What are you doing here?"**_

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**Chapter 2**

Kaoru spun around, embarrassed. "Sorry…"

The man was wearing black-rimmed glasses, his long brown hair tied up behind his head.

"Are you a new student?" he demanded.

"No…" Kaoru mumbled nervously.

"Than what are you doing here?"

"I just…"

"Show me what you can do…" he said, cutting her off briskly.

"Sorry?"

"Show me what you can draw…" he said,impatiently.

He brought out another wooden stand and placed a piece of drawing paper on it.

"Here," he handed her a pencil.

Kaoru took the pencil and walked to the wooden stand uncertainly. She peeped at the man again. **_What should I draw?_** She thought furiously.

"Well, get going…" the man said again. Kaoru looked at his stern, gloomy face and assumed naturally that he was an art professor.

She tried very hard to concentrate under his scrutiny and begun to draw.

After fifteen-minutes…

The man walked over to her and looked critically at the drawing. For a long time, he kept silent, staring at her work; his eyes narrowing.

Kaoru begun to feel hot inside the spacious studio. She was nervous, anxious and very frightened about what he was going to say next.

The man suddenly turned to look at her and extended his hand to her. "Amakusa Shougo."

"Kamiya Kaoru…"

"I suppose you are a new teacher here?"

"No, sir."

"Than, what are you doing here? You are not a student, you are too good to be one…and yet you are not a teacher…"

"Sir, I am actually…"

"I know! You are some young artist trying to make your name in the society!"

"Well, no actually. I am a student here in this University…I like Art and drawing…painting. But I couldn't take up this course, so I decided just to come and look around. I apologize sir…."

"You mean…the University did not accept you into the art course? I'll talk to them for you…"

"No, I didn't apply for the art course, plus I've never taken up art courses before…"

"You didn't apply for it?"

"Yeah…"

Kaoru saw the time on the clock hanging in the studio and gasped. Her first class had just started.

"Sir, I need to go now…I am late for my class."

Shougo nodded and looked at her with an queer expression. "Come back and visit," he said firmly.

"I will…thank you sir."

Kaoru rushed out and sped away on her bicycle.

_**Shit! I'm late for my first class!**_

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Amakusa Shougo stood in front of Kaoru's drawing for very long time. She had drawn him. Him with his black-rimmed glasses and serious expression. Did he really looked like that? He scanned through all his features in the portrait …yes, there was an uncanny alikeness of him and the portrait. In fact, the man looked just like him…

_**Kamiya Kaoru…**_

None of the teachers were able to do anything like it, and she had said that she had never taken up art courses before. He wondered what she might be studying in this University…he had not seen anyone so talented for a very long time…

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**Lunch break…**

Kaoru stood beside her bicycle and waited impatiently for Misao. Her thoughts drifted to what happened in her class just now…before she exited the lecture theatre, Professor Suzukaze had stopped her.

"Ms. Kamiya."

"Yes, sir?"

"Your father has high expectations for you. Do not be late again."

Kaoru stood frozen at her spot. **_Her father?_**

"Yes, sir…" she managed to stammer.

_**Freak! Why did my father always have to butt into things? If he had spoken to Professor Suzukaze…he must have spoken to all my professors…crap.**_

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" Kaoru-chan!"

Kaoru turned and saw Misao running towards her, her long braid turling violently behind her. Kaoru smiled, Misao's energy and cheerfulness affected her.

"Hello, Misao."

"Sorry I was slow…my professor had already taken an immense dislike with me at the first class! He just kept torturing me with questions and made me stay behind after class…gave me a lecture. Asshole."

Kaoru laughed heartily. "Yeah, that happened to me too. Not the answering part though…"

"What? Your professor made you stay too?"

"Yeah, I was late for his class and he busted me. He knows my father…and my father will know about it soon…"

Almost at once, Kaoru's handphone begun to ring. Kaoru glanced at the screen and sighed. "See? It's my father…" She pressed a button.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Kaoru. I expect everything is going well?"

"Yes, it is."

"But your professor told me that you were late for class and that you need to put more effort into understanding Japanese text…"

"Yes, I was late…but that was only because I had problem with my way around the campus…" she lied. "And the Japanese text thing, I will work on it okay? I am starving and I need to go for lunch…" planning to hang up already.

"Wait…when does your class end?"

Kaoru thought about it. Her classes ends at around 4 o'clock. But she didn't want to go home just yet. Plus she wanted to visit Mr. Amakusa Shougo again.

"My classes ends at around 4.30pm…why?"

"I want you to come to my hospital and meet some people. My office is on the 5th floor, come look for me first."

"Okay." We that she hung up. That was even worse than she thought…going to his hospital?

"Woah, is your father a stalker or what?" Misao exclaimed.

"Haha, he is…so where do you want to go for lunch?"

"I know this place called Iwasaki, the food there is delicious and the prices are reasonable."

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Saitou glared at his watch. The clicking noise was getting him more and more impatient and frustrated. **_Where the heck is Ensihi?_**

He growled under his breath, he should have never listened to his stupid half-brother.Well, he was not exactly stupid. Just arrogant, reckless and irresponsible.

Two women came into the restaurant, making a lot of noise. Two black- haired girls, one with her hair high in a pony tail, the other with shorter hair and an unusual braid almost touching the floor. He could not really see their faces properly, he just tried very hard not to go over there and yell at them to shut up. He was mad already, he does not need even more noise. The restaurant was already not to his tastes, he grunted with annoyance.

Finally Ensihi stumbled in, caught sight of Saitou and walked over to the table.

"Yo, bro. Been waiting long?"

"You made me wait here for twenty minutes and you just waltz in saying 'Yo, bro. Been waiting long?'"

"Sorry, sorry. I was delayed by a patient at the hospital…"

"Yeah, whatever. What's going on?"

"Oh, just want to catch up with your life…and you with mine…"

"Oh? Nothing is happening in my life, except for defending my god-forsaken clients. You know that. You want to tell me what's going on?"

"You missed the part of you screwing the hell out of women and dumping them straight after…"

"I'm leaving…" Saitou got up from his seat.

"Okay! Okay! I'm sorry…"

Saitou sat down reluctantly.

"So, I'm telling you now that I may be getting engaged soon…"

"To whom? I didn't know that you have a girlfriend…"

"I don't."

"Than?"

"My boss, told me that his daughter just came back from America and he would like us to get together. She is coming over to the hospital this afternoon…"

"Your boss? That old man, Kamiya?"

"Yeah."

"And you agreed? What if she turn out to be some ugly shit?"

"Don't worry. Kamiya-san said that this afternoon is just a brief introduction. She does not know of what he intended. He said that if I do not like this idea, I can just back out of it."

"His daughter…what is she? Some old spinster that no ones wants and needs her daddy to find her a man?"

"No, actually. She is only 24 yrs old, plus I've seen her photo. She's not that bad."

"So…you might be getting engaged. What does that have anything to do with me?"

"I would like your blessings if I do get engaged."

Saitou laughed bitterly.

"I am serious…I think I might really be getting married this year. It's a high possibility…I am tired of the games…aren't you?"

"No. I am never tired of the games."

"Oh."

"This Kamiya girl, what does she do?"

" She is still studying, getting her degree in Medical course…she's going to be a doctor, just like me."

"Chist, you are talking like as if she is your wife already!"

Enishi laughed.

**Meanwhile…**

"Hey Misao!"

Misao looked up from her plate of food and saw Kaoru grinning at her mischievously.

"What?"

"That guy just now…the smiling waiter…you like him, don't you?"

Misao blushed deep red. "No, I don't!"

Kaoru laughed. "Yes, you do! You should see how red your face is right now!"

Misao blushed even more.

"So, does the guy have a name?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know his name?"

"Yeah…"

"I'll find out for you!"

"How?"

"I'll ask him!"

"No! Don't do that! He'll think that you are the one who is interested in him…are you?"

"Of course not, silly Misao! I'm just trying to help. Besides, I'm too old for him. He looks seventeen."

"He is not that young!"

"How do you know?"

"Well, he just don't look that young. I don't want him to be so young. I mean…I am already nineteen myself…"

"Eh..let's just know his name first, okay?" You'll find out his age later…when you guys go out on a date."

"Kaoru-chan!"

Kaoru laughed again and waved at the young man that Misao had been eyeing ever since they enter the restaurant.

"Kaoru-chan! What are you doing?!" Misao hissed.

Kaoru winked at her, the waiter came to their table and smiled kindly. "How may I help, ladies?"

Kaoru put on this very mature face. "No, no. everything is good. I am just wondering what your name is so that my friend here," pointing at Misao. "can write down your name on this." Kaoru picked up a card on the table that said: Suggestion Slip.

The waiter's eyes widened and looked at Misao. "Oh, I am terribly sorry if I offended you ladies in anyway."

Kaoru waved it off dismissively. "No, no. You got me wrong…I meant this." She showed him the backside of the card, which read : Employee Of The Week.

The waiter's eyes widened again and then, he smiled.

"Yeah, you're the best." Misao added, blushing hard. **_What?! I can't believe I said that!_**

The young man blushed and bowed deeply. "Arigato Gozaimashita."

"What is your name?" Misao asked eagerly.

"Soujiro. Seta Soujiro."

* * *

Kaoru and Misao stumbled out of the restaurant, trying very hard not to laugh or make faces at each other. About a metre away from The Iwasaki, they burst out laughing madly.

"I can't believe you did that!!!!" Misao screamed, laughing at the same time.

"Me either!"

"Soujiro! Soujiro! He's name is Soujiro! Seta Soujiro!" Misao gushed, cupping her face in her hands.

"So, what are you going to do now? He doesn't know you that well yet…"

"Well, we can always show up at the restaurant more often…"

"We can't go too often though, with you drooling over him all the time…it'll be too obvious."

"Kaoru-chan!"

"I'm just saying the truth!"

Misao kept quiet and looked very embarrassed.

"Don't be embarrassed, I'll help you…" Kaoru said softly. Misao smiled.

"Thank you, Kaoru-chan." She said earnestly. Kaoru smiled back at her warmly.

"Come on now, we need to get back to class…"

* * *

**Haha. This chapter is done! Pls read and review and let me know what you think!**


	3. Love is in the air

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin…no matter how much I want to own Kenshin and Saitou….and Aoshi and many more!

**Hello again. Sorry , but this fanfic is not a Kaoru and Kenshin pairing. I am writing another story of Ken/Kao pairing called _Rising Sun._ But this will be a SaitouKaoru pairing, so sorry KaoruKenshin fans!**

**And, I want to thank ALL reviewers for your support and enthusiasm. Thank you all very much and I hope u guys will enjoy this chapter!**

**Anonymous miss: **Hmm..Kaoru is going to meet Kenshin later, but Kenshin won't play a big part in this fic. It's going to be a SaitouKaoru pairing.

**Scarlet Rayne: **It's going to be a Saitou and Kaoru pairing, though there is going to be triangle love situations.

**unKnown: **It's going to be a Saitou and Kaoru pairing.

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 3**

It was 4.10 pm and the last class of the day was not over yet. Kaoru stared lazily at Professor Kawakami Sada, drowning all of them in her slow, drawling voice. What? Didn't she know that it was well past four already? Kaoru couldn't wait to pay another visit to Amakusa Shougo, the earlier meeting was hasty, she had so much more that she wanted to know about him.

Finally, an outrageous student raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr.Chou?"

"Aren't this class finished? It is 4.15pm, and I am freaking hungry."

Professor Kawakami's mouth dropped opened in disbelief at the student's rude behaviour.

"All right. You can all go now."

Chou shouted happily then the professor added, "Mr.Chou, you'll stay."

The rest of the students rushed out of the lecture theatre quickly.

"Why?" Chou demanded.

Kaoru rushed out before she was able to hear more. Immediately, she mounted her bike and ride off as fast as she could to the art building. Hoping that Shougo will still be there.

* * *

She was panting when she arrived and the art students were just leaving. They stared at her curiously. She walked quickly to the art studio. The door was opened so she went in. Amakusa Shougo was working on the painting of the nude woman with her drawing still on the wooden stand next to him.

"Sir?"

Shougo turned and saw her. His stern, critical expression made her nervous all over again.

"Kaoru , right?"

"Yes."

He got up from his seat and beckoned her to come nearer. When Kaoru was standing next to him, he pointed at her drawing. "Tell me, what were you thinking when you drew that?"

Kaoru felt more nervous than ever. **_Is that a trick question?_**

"I am not thinking about anything."

"Sure?"

"Yes."

"How about feelings?"

'I felt a little nervousness but most of the time I was concentrating."

"Oh," that was all he said. "Sign it."

Kaoru was surprised, she picked up the pencil and wrote 'KK' on the portrait.

"Sir, are you an art professor here?"

"No. I am more of an advisor here. I am a professional artist. Professors don't get their own studios in Universities. They have studies."

"Oh."

"I am fascinated by your artwork. Where did you learn to draw like that?"

"At home."

"At home? What does that mean?"

"I learned to draw at home."

"Okay, with an art teacher I suppose?"

"No, my father does not allow that."

"Oh. So you learned , all by yourself?"

"Yes."

"If you have time, you can…" he was cut off by the phone ringing. He picked it up. "Hello? Oh, hi. Long time…yeah. Coming? All right, I'll be there. Okay, bye…"

Shougo hung up.

" As I was saying, if you have time, you can come over to this studio anytime. You can work in here."

"Thank you."

And again, their time was up. It was 4.45pm. She had told her father that she'll be there at 5pm. She said her goodbyes and rushed out once again. The hospital was not far from here, maybe 20 minutes on the bike? Or is it 15 minutes?

* * *

Saitou stride into the campus in his black suit and long black coat. A cigarette was hanging from his mouth. He had not seen his best friend for a long time. These days, he was beginning to feel lonely.

Just when he reached the building where Shougo was working at, a young woman rushed out bumped into him with such intensity that they both fell to the ground. His cigarette was knocked out off his mouth. Saitou got up quickly but saw that the woman was still on the ground, hurting. Her left hand was scratched badly and blood was pouring out. He had wanted to scream at her but seeing the state she was in, he controlled himself.

Tears were forming in her beautiful, bright blue eyes. Saitou noticed that she was pretty. She was not particularly exquisite, but something about her was special and very unique. She in her tight jeans, fitting her slender long limbs perfectly and the adorable red sweater she was wearing.

He snapped back to reality when she got up from the ground and saw that the coat she was carrying with her arm was torn at the sleeves from the fall. It was freezing outside. She , however did not shed a single tear no matter how much her hand was hurting.

She gathered her things back to her bag and bowed low to him. "I am so sorry."

She proceeded to her bicycle but stopped when Saitou took off his coat and put it around her shoulders. She seemed surprised.

'Thank you sir, but it's all right. Please, take it back. You'll need it."

"You'll need to treat your hand quickly," he said ignoring her comment.

"Yeah, I'm going off to the hospital now anyway. But, please, thank you for your kindness, I don't need your coat. You'll need it." She said again.

"No. I think you'll need it more than I do. Keep it for now…return it to met when the time comes."

Kaoru smiled gratefully. And that smiled was damn sweet. Lighting up her beautiful face even more. She nodded eagerly. "Thank you very much, sir."

"I'm Hajime Saitou."

She smiled again. " I'm Kaoru. I'll return it to you. Thank you."

Then, she walked to her bicycle and rode off.

* * *

"You're late," her father said, glowering at her.

"I know."

"And who's coat is that?"

"I took the wrong coat in the coat room." Kaoru lied.

"And what's wrong with your hand?"

"I fell from the bicycle."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

She was tired, too tired to argue with her father. Usually, she would be talking back rudely by now.

Kamiya Koishijiro glared at the bad scratch on his daughter's hand and at her messy hair and slightly muddy red sweater.

_**How is she going to make a good impression looking like this?**_

Suddenly, an idea came into his mind. His daughter, unaware of anything had actually made things easier for him.

He pressed a button on the intercom.

"Postpone the meeting to 5.30pm, and send Dr.Yukishiro to my office."

"Yes, sir." A voice from the intercom said.

"I am going to send someone to take care of your hand."

"No, it's okay. Just give me a first aid kit, I can do it myself."

"I've sent for him already. And please, tie your hair again, it's in a mess."

Kaoru pouted but did not move. She was too lazy to tie her hair again, but mostly it was because she hated her father giving her orders. **_It's not like as if I was trying to impress anyone…it's not even that messy._**

"Tie your hair again, Kaoru," he said again, much more firmly this time.

"No." Kaoru retorted. "What difference does it make? I am messy all over already."

"Kaoru, tie your hair…"

He was cut off by someone knocking on the door. "Come in."

Yukishiro Enishi walked in carrying a first aid kit. He saw Kaoru sitting on the chair and smiled. He recognized her from the photo. She was much prettier than he expected. Some of her hair had come out of her ponytail, making her looked delightfully sexy and childish at the same time. And her bright blue eyes are so deep and intense that he felt himself drowning in them. His eyes travelled to her lips, pink and soft, so sensual with the slight quivering due to nervousness of him staring at her.

She stood up uncertainly. Koishijiro stepped forward and grinned at Enishi, he had seen the look in Enishi's eyes. Admiration, excitement…and lust, perhaps?

"This is my daughter, Kamiya Kaoru."

Kaoru bowed politely. "Hello."

"And this is Dr. Yukishiro, one of the senior doctors in the hospital, you're lucky to have him treat your hand."

"No. Father. It's all right. I can take care of my hand myself."

"It's all right, Ms.Kamiya. I do not mind doing it, it's what I do." Enishi said kindly.

"But…"

Enishi took her hand and begun to clean the scratch.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I fell off from my bicycle."

"Oh, that must have really hurt."

"Yeah. It freaking hurts a lot."

"Kaoru!" Koishijiro said disapprovingly.

"What?" Kaoru asked innocently.

Enishi laughed, he like her outspoken personality. She was not shy or obedient like he had expected, considering what an intimidating father she has.

He took care in bandaging her had and noticed that her hands were so small and delicate compared to his. He was already falling for her. **_I am going to marry you, lady._**

When he was finished with her hand, he smiled at her again. Kaoru felt uneasy with the look in his eyes.

"Thank you very much," she said, smiling back at him weakly.

"Thank you," Koishijiro said to Enishi. "I'll see you at the meeting later."

"Yes, sir." Enishi replied, going out of the office.

Koishijiro turned back to Kaoru. "Tie your hair again. You're going to meet some very influential doctors at the meeting later on. Try to look presentable."

"Doctors? Meeting? Aren't I not suppose to go in? I am not yet a doctor,father. I don't even work here."

"It doesn't matter. It's not really a formal meeting anyway, it's more like a small gathering. Think of it as a relaxing tea time."

"Right." **_Like it is so easy…_**

****

****

* * *

****

Kaoru followed her father to another room and saw at least 30 doctors inside. **_Small gathering? Small gathering your head!_**

There were tea and coffee served with cakes and pastries. Conversations ceased when they entered. They looked up respectfully at her father and gazed at her with curiosity. Koishijiro ushered her forward.

"This is my daughter Kamiya Kaoru."

"Hello." Kaoru said nervously, bowing to all of them.

The doctors nodded and said their greetings back. They turned back to their conversations. Her father went off with another group as well. Kaoru looked around, lost.

"Kamiya-san!"

Kaoru turned and saw Enishi. She smiled. "Hello, Dr.Yukishiro."

"Come and sit with us at that table."

Kaoru glanced at where he was pointing at, there were several young doctors sitting there. She nodded and followed Enishi to the table. Enishi immediately went off again to get her tea for her. So she chatted with the others. She begun to relax, they were so kind and friendly to her.

* * *

Saitou walked over to where Shougo was painting and looked down at the art piece.

"Nice. How much do you think this will sale?"

"I don't know yet, not too little I hope."

"You're still the same. You haven't change one bit."

"Oh?"

"You're still wearing those glasses and still is a stuck-up bastard who thinks he is better than everyone else."

Shougo ignored him and continued painting. Saitou walked over to the portrait that Kaoru had drawn. "You drew yourself?"

"No."

"What? Is this your new style of drawing…this is not your style. It's too delicate."

"I did not draw that. Look closer."

Saitou bent down and saw the initials "KK?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, so you are not so alone after all. Who is KK?"

"I don't really know myself. Her name is Kaoru though…she told me her last name..but I forgot."

"Kaoru?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I met a girl outside, her name is Kaoru too."

"Oh."

"How did come to know her?"

"She just came to my studio one day and I made her draw this. She is very talented, and very good with her hands…she reminds me of Sayo."

"Oh, you still haven't hear from Sayo yet?"

Shougo remained silent. Saitou looked at the portrait again. He had to admit that it was a magnificent piece of work. He begun to wonder if it might be the girl he met just now.

* * *

**Okay! That's all for now. I want to thank all reviewers again, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Pls read and review!!!!!!!**

**I wish You All A Very Prosperous and Happy New Year!!!!**

**Katsuno**


	4. Smiles and Anger

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Thank you all reviewers very much! Ur reviews encouraged me to write!**

**To those who are wondering why Saitou seems like a nice guy here:**

**Haha, Saitou is not a nice guy here, u will figure this out later. He is not a bad guy either…**

**If you think that Saitou is out of character, well, I apologise. But, the manga and anime had never explore Saitou's sensitive or romantic side so I figure I had to make up my own.**

* * *

**Healing ****by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 4**

****

****

****

"So what do you think of my daughter?" Koishijiro asked .

Enishi smiled. "I'm in love with her."

Koishijiro laughed, "Don't rush into things just yet, she does not know of the engagement."

"Don't worry, I will be patient."

Koishijiro nodded. "In the mean time, just try to get close to her."

"Okay."

Kaoru was finding the lesson extremely boring. She didn't remember medical lessons to be so boring before, or was it because she was opened to a new world of arts by Amakusa Shougo? For the past few days, she had been spending time with him in the studio after her classes. It was the first time she was taught in art. In the past, she taught herself without fresh ideas, opinions or guidance. Painting together with Shougo taught her how she could put more distinct emotions into her drawing. What he experienced, he would tell her about it. She had never felt more warm in the heart. After class today, she'll be visiting him again.

So there she was daydreaming off with her arts and Amakusa Shougo when Professor Suzukaze called her.

"Kaoru!"

Kaoru snapped back to the lesson. "Yes?"

Professor Suzukaze pointed at the picture projected by the OHP. In the picture was a old man who has really bad swollen knees and ankles, there were also lesions on the soles of feet.

The professor turned back to her, a smug expression on his face, she knew she was not paying attention. "For the past ten minutes, we've been discussing about this picture. And you weren't listening." He smiled. "The swelling is caused by arthritis. Combined with the lesions and the conjunctivitis. I'm sure you know what the diagnosis is, since you assumed that you don't need to pay attention in class…"

Kaoru stared hard at the picture, "Well, it could be …"

"Could be what Ms.Kamiya?"

Kaoru focused, there was no way she was going to look bad infront of her jerk professor who reports everything to her father.

She looked at Professor Suzukaze in the eye and spoke clearly. "It's Reiter's syndrome. The cause is unknown. It's usually accompanied by low grade fever."

Professor Suzukaze looked taken aback. He had not expect her to know diagnosis… "That's right. But what is the prognosis?" She surely couldn't know this one, he had not yet mention it to the class.

"The prognosis is unclear. It can be treated with anti-flammation drugs."

The professor was even more surprised by now. He had mot expected her to know the answer to that as well. It was true that her grades of her first seven years at medical school in the US was excellent, but he had never expected anyone to answer this question so accurately. She was unflinching when she answered him, as if she knew from the very beginning that she was correct.

"That's right," he finally managed to say. "We're done for today."

Students begun to go out of the theatre. When Kaoru walked past Professor Suzukaze, he called to her, "Ms.Kamiya , could you stay for a moment?"

Kaoru smiled. **_Hell no, like as if I am going to hear more acid words from you…_**"Sorry sir, I am am a rush today."

Before he could reply, Kaoru walked out.

* * *

"If you don't take art, what courses are you taking?" Shougo asked.

"Medical courses…" Kaoru replied.

"Why?"

"Huh?"

"Why did you take up medical courses when you enjoy art so much?"

"Ermm…"

"Well?"

"Ermm…well…I am not so sure myself."

"Not sure?"

Kaoru nodded dully.

Then, they were silent once again, both of them continuing with their art work. Suddenly, Shougo put down his brush. He turned to Kaoru, "What do you want in life, Kaoru?"

Kaoru looked at him, surprised and confused. What did she want in life? That question seemed so alien and unusual to her. She did not know how to answer Shougo. All her life, her father had planned everything for her, she had never thought about what she might want in life. His question made her ask herself why she had not fought for what she wanted instead of following whatever her father had planned. And she was already bloody 24 yrs old. What does she want in life? She doesn't even know herself!

"You don't know…" Shougo said softly, looking over at her with a queer expression. Like as if he could see through her and understand how she was feeling right then.

Kaoru nodded. "Yes, I do not know…"

"It's all right. You'll know eventually, but think about it carefully."

Kaoru nodded again. This was what she like about Amakusa Shougo. He was quiet, stern man, there was nothing very fancy about the way he carried himself. He was caring and understanding in his own gentle ways. He may be blunt and straight forward in the way he speaks but Kaoru liked that about him. He had been making her realized a lot of things the past few days when she sat with him in his studio, sipping coffee and painting. She enjoyed spending time with him, she felt that she could relax when she was with him. Then, she remembered the coat which belonged to a certain Hajime Saitou, she had not return the coat to him yet. It was washed and neatly folded, tucked into a paper bag.

"Shougo?"

"Hmm…"

"Do you know someone named Hajime Saitou?"

Shougo turned. "Why?"

"He was here a few days ago….I met him outside at the entrance…he lent me his coat, I have not return it to him yet…"

"Hajime Saitou…"

"Yes."

"I know him."

"Really?! Could you please tell me where he is so I can return his coat to him…"

"Oh…" Amakusa Shougo thought about it for a while.

"I'm going to visit him later on, would you like to come along?"

Her father had wanted her to go to his hospital again…to discuss something…**_God knows what!_** Kaoru made up her mind. "Sure."

Shougo smiled. Kaoru gasped. It was the first time she had seen him smile!

Shougo looked confused. "What's wrong?"

Kaoru started laughing. "No, nothing is wrong…it's just that it's the first time I've seen you smile!"

Shougo looked even more confused than ever. He turned back to his painting and said simply, "Let's go at around 5:30…"

Kaoru smiled again. He was so adorable! "Okay!"

* * *

Enishi glanced at his watch again. It was almost 5:00, Kaoru should be here soon. What could he do to get closer to her? She seemed very friendly and open, so much more approachable compared to her father. Which made things harder…he need to impress her.

* * *

"Come on, let's go." Shougo said. Kaoru nodded and begun to pack her things.

"Is it far from here, where Hajime-san is?"

"Nope, you can cycle there, I'll walk and lead the way."

"Okay."

On their way to see Saitou:

"What does Hajime-san do?"

"He's a lawyer."

"Oh. How did you know him?"

"We are best friends since we were in University."

"Oh…"

* * *

His secretary walked in again. He growled, "I thought I told you that I don't want to be disturbed."

His secretary shrank back in fear and replied timidly, "But sir, there is a man named Amakusa Shougo and a young lady waiting for you outside."

**_Shougo?_** His best friend was not the type who would look for him first. It just wasn't like him at all. **_And a lady? With him?…_** Whatever it is..he did not have time for them…

He nodded to his secretary, "Send them in."

The door opened again and Shougo walked in. His hair in disarrayed and Sitou noticed that he was smiling slightly for a change. Behind him was a raven-haired woman, who looked more like a small girl in an adult body. He narrowed his eyes, it was the same girl who had crashed into him a few days ago. **_Kaoru…_**

He changed his mind of sending them away.

Shougo just looked at him, "Hello."

Kaoru stepped forward to him at his table and smiled gratefully. "Thank you very much for your coat." She handed him a paper bag, his coat neatly folded in it.

Saitou took it wordlessly. He did not know how to respond. He was not used to someone like Kaoru. Her cheerfulness and gentleness…and her childish innocence. And her lack of fear and shyness was another thing he had noticed.

"This is the Kaoru who drew my portrait." Shougo said.

Saitou gazed at Kaoru. She was wearing a simple long white dress, and a large brown sling bag hung from her shoulders. She smiled prettily at him.

"Ah…so this is the Kaoru…"

Kaoru continued to smile. Shougo smiled too. Everything seemed brighter with her around.

* * *

Kaoru went home happily. Hajime-san, Shougo and her had talked about art and got to know more about each other. She liked them both very much, she no longer felt as lonely as when she had just arrived in Japan. She did not meet up with Misao much these days. Misao was very busy with her studies and Kaoru understands that.

Just when she arrived at the apartment, she realized she had forgotten to call her father to tell him that she couldn't go to his hospital today. He should probably be sitting in the living room right now, waiting to lash at her.

She groaned. She wished that she could rent an apartment. So she could live her own life, without her father always breathing down her neck.

She twist the lock, and as she had expected, her father was there waiting. Hell no, she was so not going to listen to him. She does not need any of this.

"Where were you?"

"Somewhere."

"Oh! You think it is funny do you?"

"Indeed I do."

"Well, I can't see how it can be amusing in any way at all, many doctors were present at the meeting. Doctors I would like you to meet. Medical things we've discussed are actually important…and you weren't there! Doctor Yukishiro was expecting you as well…"

"I thought I met all the DOCTORS already?! And what about Dr. Yukishiro? What about him is so damn important?"

Her father looked furious. " His is your fiancé, for Christ's sake! That is why he is so damn important!"

Kaoru stared at him, her mind blank. Nothing she was hearing was making sense to her. Yukishiro Enishi, her fiancé? What was happening? She was outraged. Her father had gone behind her back and planned her marriage as well! Damn him!

She finally found her voice, "My fiancé? What are you talking about?"

Her father kept quiet and just continued to look at her. Kaoru stared hard at him, "What are you talking about?"

Koishijiro shrugged and said, "Dr. Yukishiro Enishi is your fiancé."

"And when was this decided?"

"A month ago before you came back to Japan."

"And you didn't even care to tell me about it? Like you said, it's my goddamn fiancé!"

"I'm telling you now!"

"Oh! 'I'm telling you now!', is that all you can come up with? In case you don't know, it's a modern world and arranged marriages don't work. At least not with me!"

Kaoru breathed in deeply, struggling to hold back her tears. She ran to the door.

"Where do you think you are going?"

"Away from here!"

Kaoru ran out and slammed the door behind her.

* * *

Saitou took out the coat from the paper bag. It was folded very neatly. He put the fabric against his face and breathed in deeply. The coat smelled refreshingly sweet…like flowers…she had washed it…

* * *

Kaoru walked to a nearby park, she just want to be alone. She let her tears fall freely, she did not need to hold them back now. The thunder and lighting danced across the sky simultaneously and she looked up…rain was beginning to fall. Big pearly drops fall on her face, washing her tears away. She stood up and put her hands into the air, welcoming the rain, embracing the cold.

Suddenly, an acute pain shot through her head and her legs wobbled and her eyes could not focus…then, she saw nothing else…

* * *

**Okay!!!! I hope you all enjoy this chapter! PLS REVIEW!!!!!!! The more reviews the faster I type! )**

**KatsunoCZ**


	5. Love?

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Hello again all my darling readers. Here is the fifth chapter…these days I am exhausted from so much work but here it is anyway. I hope you all enjoy it. There is a 'hot' scene here…I hope I did okay with it cos I am still not so experienced with writing hot scenes.**

**Thank you REVIEWERS!! **

**Thanks to my wonderful 'daughter', Jrz…who showed me examples of writing.**

**Oh yeah, one more thing: Kaoru is not knocked out by anyone...she just had this acute pain in her head..and fainted. This kind of thing happened to my head several times...and my head is REALLY swimming...woah...I wonder what's wrong with me....I should go for a medical check up.**

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 5**

When Kaoru opened her eyes, she wondered if she had, as it was just as dark with them shut. She closed her eyes to try again. This time, her head was swimming and she could figure out very barely the white ceilings and the carvings around them. She turned her head to the right and saw a tall dark figure with the back facing her. Before she could figure out who it was she passed out again.

* * *

Kaoru woke up again, this time her head wasn't hurting. She looked down at herself and noticed that she was wearing white pajamas. **_Where am I? _**She tried to remember what had happened…she had an argument with her father and she ran out…rain…and she fainted.

She stared again at the pajamas she was wearing. Who brought her here? And who changed her clothes for her? Kaoru begun to panic.

"Don't worry, my maid changed for you. You can't stay in those drenched clothes you know…"a voice said tonelessly.

Kaoru jerked around. "Hajime-san!"

Saitou walked towards her and Kaoru drew up the blankets around her, feeling very awkward.

"You were unconscious for two days. You have high fever…found you in the park…drenched in a puddle…"

Kaoru tried to sit up but Saitou pushed her down. Kaoru stared at him questioningly. His hands were on both of her shoulders, his face closed to hers. Kaoru tried to move back against the pillows and she felt blood rushing to her face. Saitou smiled mischievously and moved his face even closer. Kaoru panicked, she put her hands on his shoulders, willing for him not to come any closer. "What are you doing?"

Saitou smiled again, then he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. Kaoru let out a small gasp. "Rest. We can't have you sick again, can we?"

Kaoru nodded, very surprised and embarrassed. Saitou smiled again. Then, he walked out of the room.

* * *

Saitou was still smiling when he walked out of Kaoru's room. He remembered her surprised gasp when he kissed her on the forehead and her small hands on his shoulders…her blue eyes staring at him so innocently. He didn't mean to alarm her, but he just couldn't resist kissing the milky, smooth skin of hers. She smelt so nice, intoxicating him with the same fresh flowers smell from his coat. The smell was still lingering around his nose…

* * *

Later at night...

Kaoru was finding it very hard to sleep. She decided to walk around a little, she needed some fresh air.

It was midnight already…Kaoru tiptoed out of her room noiselessly. She found herself in a long dark corridor. Then, she tiptoed on, going to wherever the corridor was leading her. The house was extremely big.

Soon, she was in the dinning room. Suddenly, she heard rushed heavy steps from above. Someone was awake! Kaoru panicked, she hated to wake anyone up. But she was making not much noise, was she? No one could possibly hear her tiptoes…

The rushed steps came closer and the lights in the dinning room was switched on. Kaoru stood, frozen in her spot. The owner of those rushed steps was Hajime Saitou. He was wearing dark blue pajamas and looked surprised to find her here.

"….Sorry…I couldn't sleep…" Kaoru mumbled.

Saitou walked to her. "Why? Is there something wrong with the room?"

"No! There is nothing wrong with it. And also, I want to thank you for saving me and for…"

Saitou touched her lips with a finger. Kaoru felt her face go red again. "Say no more…you're welcome."

Kaoru nodded.

"You couldn't sleep?" Saitou asked.

Kaoru nodded again.

"Me too."

Kaoru looked at him and smiled.

"Oh yeah…by the way…since you got here, your cell phone was ringing continuously for a long time. Someone was trying to reach you, maybe you should call back."

Kaoru's heart sank, it must be her father. "Where is my cell phone?"

"In the hall…" Saitou gestured down the corridor. "Just walk down and turn right, you'll see it."

But Kaoru did not move to get her things. "Oh," she said simply.

"Don't you want to call back who ever was trying to reach you?"

"No."

"Oh." Saitou said hesitantly. "Then, how about let's both have a cup of hot cocoa and go to sleep after that?"

Kaoru nodded gratefully. "Okay, I'll make the cocoa."

Saitou sat down on the dining table. "You know where the kitchen is?"

Kaoru pointed into an opened room. "There, right?"

Saitou nodded. Kaoru walked off to the kitchen.

* * *

After several minutes, Kaoru re-emerged from the kitchen. She had some trouble finding the cocoa. But here she was carrying two cups of steaming hot cocoa.

After they had finished with their drinks, Saitou cleared up the cups.

"Good night, Kaoru. I'll be going back to sleep."

Kaoru nodded.

"Your things are down the hall."

Kaoru nodded again. She was worried again. She couldn't possibly go back to her father's apartment, she didn't want to go back. Which means she needed a job to support herself and somewhere to stay. She begun walking towards the hall. Saitou stared after her.

* * *

Kaoru was sitting up on the bed, looking at her cell phone. Looking at the numerous missed calls all labeled 'Father'. Suddenly, it begun to ring again. The cell phone light up and on the screen were the blinking word 'Father'. Kaoru continued to stare at the screen, she pressed a button and her father's voice came booming out.

"Kaoru? ….Kaoru?"

Kaoru just stared on dully, silent.

"Are you there? If you are listening…I'm telling you, you better come back. Where were you all these days? You know that I don't tolerate with this kind of behaviour."

Kaoru disconnect the phone call and begun to cry silently. The tears came so unexpectedly, she did not know why she was crying. Perhaps it was because she felt so lost.

Then, the door opened and Kaoru stopped crying almost immediately. She quickly wiped away the tears with her sleeves. It was Hajime Saitou standing at the door.

"Are you all right?"

Kaoru nodded quickly and broke into a forced smile. "I'm Okay!"

Saitou walked towards her. "You don't look okay."

"Why are you here?" Kaoru blurted, then she quickly covered her mouth realizing how rude she sounded. "Sorry."

Saitou smiled lightly and sat down on the bed. He reached out and stroke her face gently. "You were crying…"

Kaoru was so embarrassed, she reached up and cupped her hands over his. Not knowing whether she want to stop those comforting touches or to urge them on.

"I was just checking up on you…what's wrong?"

He stared into her eyes, trying to read what she was thinking. Kaoru stard back, feeling bare with those golden eyes staring so openly at her.

"I…..I….I was just…" her voice faltered and tears welled up in her eyes. **_Damn! Why does the tears have to come now?_**

Then, Saitou drew her into a warm embrace, smoothing her back gently. Kaoru let go of everything and plunged into his chest, circling her arms around him, sobbing quietly.

Saitou looked down at her, surprised with her strength (considering how small she was) and just hugged her tighter.

* * *

Saitou woke up to find Kaoru asleep on his chest, her arm around his waist. She must have mistaken him for a pillow. He did not remember how they came to sleep together( just sleep and nothing else) last night, but he enjoyed the feel of her in his arms and the sweet smell of her. Saitou took this chance to have another close look of her. Her silky black hair was as long as her waist and her beautiful eyes were closed. Her skin looked more milky than ever. Saitou reached down to touch her face. Kaoru stirred at the touch of his hand and mumbled something that he couldn't catch. She snuggled even closer to him.

Then,all of a sudden, her eyes opened. Kaoru stared up at him and moved away quickly, embarrassed. "I'm so sorry!"

Saitou laughed and pulled her nearer again. "No, no.It's all right. I like the feel of you…"

Kaoru looked up at him, unsure. "I…I…"

Saitou circled an arm around her tiny waist and pulled her against his chest. Kaoru blushed deeper than the deepest of red and Saitou laughed again.

"Don't be embarrassed…" he said, "That is..unless you don't like me holding you?"

"No! It's not that I don't like you holding me…it's just that …." Kaoru blurted, very flustered.

Saitou leveled his face with hers and looked deep into her eyes, "It's just what?"he asked as he begun playing with her hair.

Kaoru did not answer and covered her face with her hands. Saitou let out a soft chuckle and pulled away her hands slowly and moved closer to kiss her.

Kaoru stopped him. "I'm still sick!"

Saitou smiled, "I don't care." He tried to kiss her again, but Kaoru tried to stop him again. Saitou stopped and looked deep into her eyes, "I want you, Kaoru…don't you want me ?"

Kaoru felt defenseless, Saitou could see very well that she wanted him as well, and she did not know why tears were welling up in her eyes…not because of sadness...it was actually sort of because of relieve. She reached up and put her arms shyly around Saitou. Saitou lips smashed into hers, rough and demanding. Kaoru kissed him back passionately, with all the urgency and desire she felt. The kiss was making her head swim…and it was actually a nice feeling. Saitou explored her mouth furiously, he could not get enough of her and brought her body close to his. They were molding into each other, passionate and desperate.

Then, Saitou's lips traveled down her neck, nibbling her softly as he went down. Kaoru's body was on fire and Saitou reached down into her pajamas, stroking her breasts gently, a smile playing on his lips. Kaoru let out a little cry and grabbed his hand, stopping him. She looked up at him with a confused expression. Saitou looked back at her, and Kaoru did not know why she was not angry…like she would be before. Something about this man had made her give herself to him so willingly earlier, he had erupted a fiery passion in her, making her want him so badly. Christ, she was already in love with him!

And right now, he was looking at her with such hunger and desire that it almost scared her. She wanted more, but she knew that they were moving too fast… so instead of continuing what they were doing, she pressed her face against his chest and hugged him to her. Saitou let out a low sigh and just put an arm over her back. So they lay there, silent.

* * *

"So what are you going to do?" Saitou asked.

They were at the dining table eating breakfast.

"Hmm…I'll need to find a job first, get a place to stay and then, I'll take it from there…"

She had told him about the fight she had with her father, leaving out the part about her arranged fiancé. She told him also about how her father had always took control of her life, and how much she wanted to break free. And Saitou just listened, not asking more than she wanted to tell.

"What day is it today?" Kaoru asked.

"Sunday."

"What day was it when you found me unconscious at the park?"

Saitou thought about it, "It was Thursday."

Kaoru nodded. She had missed two days of class. She got up from the table. "I'm going to make a phone call."

Saitou nodded, smiling lightly at her.

* * *

"Hello, Misao?"

"Kaoru! Where have you been??"

Kaoru laughed. "I was sick, but I'm fine now…"

"But than I heard rumors that you ran away from home, your father was hanging around the campus."

"My father? How did you know?"

"I heard Professor Suzukaze called him 'Kamiya-san'…"

"Right."

"So? Did you ran away from home?"

"I would hardly call it ran away! I'm 24 yrs old, Misao! Hpw could it be such a big issue when I'm already capable of taking care of myself?"

"But…"

"Hey. I'll explain to you later…but I really need you to help me right now…"

"Sure!"

"Can I stay with you for a while before I find my own place?"

"Aha! I knew it that you ran away from home!"

Kaoru laughed. "I wouldn't say 'ran away' but, yeah, I did leave home..you know how it is, I'll explain later…so is it okay if I stay with you for a while?"

"Yeah! I'm renting a flat on my own right now…my falt mate had just left so there is a spare room."

"Really? Thanks!"

"No problem….where are you now?"

"I'm in this lawyer's house…"

"Lawyer?! What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into?!"

"No, no. No trouble, Misao! I'll explain later! What's your address?"

"How about let's meet at the Iwasaki's at lunch time? I haven't go there for a long time…"

"Sure…hahhahaha!"

"What?!"

"Nothing!"

"What?!"

"Hahahahhahah!! It's about your Seta-san isn't it?"

"No, it's not! And he is not my Seta-san!"

"Haha…whatever you say, Misao-chan!"

"Okay, I'll see you later then?"

"Yup!"

"Bye!"

"Bye!"

* * *

Kaoru put on her long white dress (it was washed and ironed) and walked out.

Saitou was no longer in the dining roon so she sat down and waited for him.

Saitou walked in moments later, dressed in all black. Kaoru just stared at him. He was so tall…and he looked scary in an alluring way. He was fiddling with his tie and Kaoru just watched him, marveling at how magnificent he looked. Tenderness swept over her and she suddenly had the urge to hug him again. Everything about him seemed so fascinating.

Saitou was done with his tie. "What's wrong?"

Kaoru shook her head. "Nothing!"

"Made your phone call already?"

"Yeah, I called my friend and I'll be staying at her place for a while…"

Saitou nodded. Kaoru nodded back at him, actually a little bit disappointed that he didn't ask her to stay. But she couldn't expect that, could she? She wasn't even sure what their relationship was evolving into. Saitou had not utter a word about it and it was driving her mad with anxiety.

"When will you be leaving?" he finally said.

"Around noon."

Saitou nodded again and glanced at his watch. "I'll need to go now, I'm already late for work…"

Kaoru nodded, her heart sank even lower.

"Give me your number so I can call you." He added.

Her heart lifted a bit and she scribbled her number on a piece of paper and gave it to him.

Saitou smiled. "Rest, before you leave for your friend's."

Then, he kissed her lightly on the mouth before walking away to the front door. Kaoru blushed and reached up to touch her lips…watching his shadow disappearing.

* * *

**HOHohoho!! This chapter is finally done! I really hope that I did okay with the romantic scene…PLS tell me what you guys think about it….PLS REVIEW!!!!!!**

**Ja ne!**

**KatsunoCZ**


	6. Independence

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Hello! Thank you so much all reviewers: **

**Jrz:Hola! Hahah, sorry dude, about the rushed romance part…hope this chapter is better dude.I'll update 'Rising Sun' soon…just having troubles with emotions of the characters, that's all. Let me now what u think of this chapter dude.**

**LooPiw:Thank you for saying such nice things, I hope u like this chapter and review again!**

**Kaori-angel:Thank you For always reviewing and sorry for not updating for so long. I hope u like this chapter and please let me know what u think!**

**Nannon:Sorry I haven't update for so long, have been busy…but I hope u like this chapter, please review again!**

**Hahahahah..I hope you all like this chapter! )**

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 6**

Kaoru waited at The Iwasaki's but Misao had not arrive yet and Seta Soujiro was no where in sight.

Finally, Misao walked in, she gazed around and sighed. Kaoru chuckled to herself, so Misao-chan had noticed that Seya-san wasn't here as well!

Kaoru waved at her. "Misao!"

Misao's face lit up when she saw her and ran towards the table. With a loud thump, she sat on the chair.

"So! Tell me everything!" Misao exclaimed.

"Okay, okay. I had an argument with my father. He actually engaged me to someone already…"

"What!"

"Yeah. So I ran out, went to a park to be alone. Then it begun to rain. Somehow, I fainted and was rescued by Hajime-san."

"Wait a minute! Who is this Hajime-san?"

"The lawyer I told you about. So anyway, I was unconscious for two days with high fever…I'm okay now. But there is no way I'm going to live at my father's again. I mean, I am 24 yrs old! I should be living by myself and taking care of myself. I should not live my parents and depend on them anymore. I've been taking care of myself just fine in the US, what is the difference here?"

"Ohhh…so why did this Hajime-san rescue you? Did he bring you to the hospital?"

"Nope, he brought me to his house…"

"WHAT!"

"Hey, relax! I know Hajime-san, okay? He is Amakusa Shougo's friend…"

"Okay, okay. You mean you know him, before he rescued you when you fainted?"

"Yeah."

"And Amakusa Shougo! That mad, arrogant artist always hanging around the University? Woah, you know him too? There is a lot of things I'm missing out, Kaoru."

"He's not mad! Well, maybe a bit aloof to those who don't know him well enough…"

"You still haven't tell me about how you came to know him or this Hajime-san! Spill!"

Kaoru laughed and told her everything, starting from how she met Amakusa Shougo on the first day in University, how Hajime Saitou and she had crashed into each other, and how they were formally introduced later on. She also told her about how Saitou had took care her and consoled her when she was feeling lost.

"Awww…." Misao gushed, a dreamy expression on her face. "Kaoru-chan is in love!"

Kaoru blushed.

"Well, are you?" Misao demanded playfully.

Kaoru nodded timidly. "I think I am…"

"Awwwww!" Misao gushed again. "Okay! Enough about your life! Since Seta-san is not here today, it's safe to tell you what I've found out!"

"What did you find out?"

"I found out that he is one of my classmate's cousin!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, this girl Tsubame-chan. She is really nice, gentle and helpful."

"Oh, so what else did you find out about him?"

"He is in Japan on holiday, he actually studies in the USA at Princeton!"

"Really? I studied there last time when I was still in America…so he is smart, than?"

"What! You studied there?"

"Yeah, I didn't tell you?"

"No, you didn't tell me!"

"Oh okay, hahaso Seta-san is smart?"

"Yeah, he is studying mechanical engineering there, so his job at The Iwasaki's is just for fun. Said he want new experiences…gosh, he is perfect!"

Kaoru laughed. "So, I guess Tsubame is going to introduce you to him right?"

"Yeah! How did you know?"

"I guessed. So when is she going to bring you guys together?"

"This weekend…but because I'm scared that it will be too obvious if I went alone with Tsubame-chan…so I asked her if I can bring a friend along. Kaoru can you come with me?"

"I would like to, but I don't know your friend Tsubame. I might be rude if I just tag along like this."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. I've asked her if I can bring you and she was delighted…she really admire you, you know. Now that I remember, what happened between you and Professor Suzukaze in the lecture theatre last time?"

"Huh? I'm confused..Tsubame admires me? Suzukaze? What are you talking about?"

"Okay let me say it this way: Tsubame admires you, infact a lot of people know you because of something that you did to Suzukaze in the lecture theatre. The gossip is going wild. Some say that you argued with him and made him shut up because you are so smart and know all the answers to the questions that he asked you. And some nasty people said that you are in a relationship with him, and because you two are going through a rough time, so he pick on you in class…and because you are so pissed off with him, you run away from home…"

"What the! Now, I'm really confused…"

"Ridiculous, isn't it? Of course I didn't even think of you being together with Suzukaze, what really happened?"

"I was dreaming in class and he caught me. Showed me a picture, asked me for the diagnosis and the prognosis. So I answered him. That's all. The question he asked me wasn't even that hard, I mean, I'm sure lots of other people in the class can answer it. So, I can't see why it is such a big deal, how did so many people know about it anyway?"

"And you answered him, without making any mistakes at all?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, but you must have done something more to make the rumors go so wild…"

"Hmm….let me think…" Kaoru mumbled and begun to think hard. "Oh! When he dismissed us, he asked me to stay and I told him off and said that I was in a hurry…but, again, I can't see what's wrong with that again…"

"Kaoru-chan, things are different here in Japan, professors demand a lot of respect and obedience, unlike in America…where students can speak out and are treated like adults. Not that the professors here are mean or anything, it's just that Suzukaze is one of those professors who enjoy seeing people suffer…he is so scary that when he asks students questions, they will end up getting it wrong or stuttering…not because they don't know the answer but because they are just scared of Suzukaze…he is famous for his 'killing stare'."

"Yeah, no shit."

"So do you get it now? That's why people are talking about you…"

Kaoru made a face and burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing about? It's serious business, you know!"

Kaoru continued laughing, trying very hard to stop herself. "Sor..Sorry, it is just that the thought of me a Suzukaze together, really cracks me up!"

Misao started laughing to.

"So when is your friend Tsubame going to introduce to Seta-san?"

"This Saturday."

"Oh!"

"Yeah, isn't it great? Part of me is so nervous…another part of me is so happy…"

Kaoru smiled.

"Tell me about your Hajime Saitou…what does he look like?" Misao asked.

"Well, actually I am not so sure what kind of relationship Hajime-san and I have right now…"

"You mean, you guys are not officially together, yet?"

"I don't know, when do I know it is official? And to answer your question about his looks…he is very tall, a lot taller than me. He is usually wearing black…and his eyes are sort of a golden colour…"

"You are worried, aren't you?"

"Yeah, a little…so many things are happening all at one time…"

"Don't worry. You love him, right?"

"Yeah, but I think I shouldn't because I don't know much about him yet…"

Misao smiled encouragingly at Kaoru. "Don't worry, Kaoru-chan, things will turn out just fine!"

Kaoru gave a small smile and sipped at her green tea.

* * *

"Can you find her?" Koishijiro barked into the phone.

He had been searching for her for days. He didn't expect her to react so violently and really 'run away'. And where could she go? From what Suzukaze had said, Kaoru doesn't have any close friends in class…and judging from the money she had with her, she should not have last out there for so long.

"No, sir." A male voice in the telephone replied. "None of us see her anywhere."

"Why not?"

"We just couldn't find her, sir…"

"Find her!"

"Yes, sir."

_**Damn! Where the hell can she possibly go?**_

* * *

****

They were on their way to Misao's flat.

"Misao-chan?"

"Na-ni?"

"Can you come with me to my father's apartment so that I can move out my things?"

"Hmmm.okay. But what if your father is there?"

"He can't stop me."

"He can't?"

"I'll need your support of course, that is why I'm asking you to come with me…you'll give me a lot of courage just by standing there. But. Yeah..he can't stop me."

"Okay, when will we be going?"

"Is this afternoon okay?"

Misao nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah…but can you handle class tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure. Why?"

"I imagine that people will be nasty to you. Suzukaze as well…"

"ha! I don't care what they think! I don't give a damn about Suzukaze as well."

"Okay. That's brave of you."

Kaoru laughed.

* * *

Amakusa Shougo was painting. Kaoru had not come to the studio for two days. He told himself that he should not worry. Was he worrying? He was not so sure about these feelings. He had heard from those meddlesome professors that she ran away because she had an affair with professor Suzukaze…or something like that…

Was it possible? That Kaoru was with Suzukaze and didn't tell him about it? Kaoru never talk much about her views that she had upon life or men…they had always talk about art, music and how to improve…but now he think of it…it might be possible that Kaoru was with Suzukaze. Suzukaze, afterall…was actually quite attractive, he had red short hair, amber eyes, only the scary expression on his face and the way he treated students frightened people away…other than that, Suzukaze was actually quite handsome.

Could it be that Kaoru was really with Suzukaze? Shougo's mind was twisting wildly…at last he could not stand it anymore…he needed to talk to someone, but he didn't have Kaoru's handphone number. So he dialed Saitou's instead.

"Hello?"

"I'm busy now, you know, Shougo…" Saitou grumbled.

"I'm wondering…"

"Hmmm?"

"I …"

"Spit it out, Shougo."

"I'm wondering if you have any idea where Kamiya Kaoru is?"

"Huh?"

"That girl, the one I introduced you to last Thursday…"

"Oh her. Yeah?"

"She is missing, she ran away or something like that, haven't been to her classes eversince Thursday…do you …by any chance see her?"

Saitou laughed aloud into the telephone.

"What's so funny?" Shougo asked, annoyed.

"You like her, don't you?"

Shougo didn't reply.

"You're worried sick, right?"

Silence.

"Fine, it's okay if you won't admit it…but I know where she is…if you want to know…."

"Where is she?"

Saitou laughed again. "Anxious, aren't you? She is save, Shougo…don't worry so much. She did not run away, she just happened to faint outside and I rescued her…"

"Wait a minute, you mean she has been with you the past few days?"

"Not today, but yeah…for the past three days…"

"You didn't do anything to her, did you?"

"What if I have?"

"Saitou…if you take advantage of her..."

"What? What are you going to do to me?"

"Where is she now?"

"With her friend."

"Oh."

"I need to go now, Shougo."

"Oh."

"And Shougo?"

"She is damn sweet, you have good taste."

"Wha?"

But Saitou had already hung up. What did Saitou mean by that? He did not touch Kaoru..did he? And so Amakusa begun to worry again….

* * *

Misao showed Kaoru to a room. It already had a bed and some empty shelves along with it.

It was smaller than her room at home, but she did not mid. At least her father was not here.

"What do you think?" Misao asked.

Kaoru smiled gratefully. "It's really nice. Thanks, Misao."

Misao was pleased, and smiled back warmly. Kaoru dumped her bag on the bed. "Ha, these are all my belongings"

Misao laughed."It's all right, we're soon going to get the rest of your stuff, right?"

Kaoru nodded, she had to be strong.

* * *

Kaoru ran away…to where?

Enishi thought hard, about where else she could possibly be. He had tried all the places he could think of, but to no avail. Kamiya-sama had told him that she knew about the engagement and that was why she ran off.

**_Damn that old man! _**He had ruined everything! All his romantic plans had been demolished. He never wanted anything like this to happen, he never meant topush her into a corner or to alarm her until it would turn out this way.

* * *

**In America…**

Sanosuke was walking across the street of shops, there were lots of people bargaining loudly or just chatting. Yahiko was at a friend's house and he was bored. Jou-chan surely did played a large part in his life. He realized that now. She kept him and Yahiko on track and he had not heard from her eversince that day in the airport. He had never seen her online. He missed Jou-chan.

Suddenly, there was a scream. Then, a man bumped roughly into him.

"Help!" a girl cried. A frail girl came rushing towards Sano and crashed into him as well. Sano leaned down, "What's wrong?"

The girl was out of breath, trying to chase after the thief. "He..he….took…my bag."she panted.

Sano ruffled her hair playfully and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, I'll get it back for you."

Then, he disappeared into the crowd. The girl stared after him…**_wait for him?_**

**After twenty minutes…**

Sayo stood up and decided that she should just forget about her bag and go home. How silly she was to believe that young man. She remembered his brown eyes and his queer spiky hair. She sighed again and begun walking down the street.

"Hey!"

Sayo turned around and the young man was there, panting, leaning against a pole for support. In his hand was her bag, he handed it to her. "When I told you that I'll get it for you, I will."

He had really gotten it back for her! She looked at him in awe, gratitude and admiration. How did he do it?

She took the bag from him, "Thank you." He smiled lazily at her and ruffled her hair playfully again. She scowled and he laughed.

"Just be more careful, next time, ya?" he said. She nodded and he ran off.

"Wait!" she called. But he was already too far away to hear her. She didn't even get his name.

* * *

**In Japan**

Kaoru turned the lock to her parent's apartment as quietly as possible as she could. Misao was behind her, watching anxiously. With a deep breath, she pushed the door open.

And her father wasn't at home. **_Thank god…_**

But her mother was sitting at the sitting room, her eyes looking up at Kaoru in surprise.

"Kaoru! Where have you been!" she cried, walking towards Kaoru. "Why did you run away?"

"I did not run away. I had an argument with dad and so I went out to cool myself down. It was raining heavily and I was caught in the rain. The, I fainted. So I did not deliberately run away, mother."

"What! You fainted?" her mother shrieked, her hands on Kaoru's shoulders.

Kaoru pushed away her mother's hands. "Chill, mom. I'm all right now. I'm moving out."

"What?"

"I'm moving out."

"But you can't take care of yourself."

"Sure I can."

"You should stay with us! You have a room here and someone to care for you here, so why are you moving out?"

"I can't stay with you guys forever. And I am not a child, I'm 24 yrs old. I took care of myself just fine when I was in the US without you or dad. Plus, I can't satnd living with dad."

"Why not?"

"Did you know that he arranged a marriage for me?"

"No."

"There you go. He is controlling my life, he has always been and that can't go on anymore. I can take care of myself and make my own decisions. I can't always rely on you guys."

"But I'm sure your father has his reasons."

"Sure he has, he always do. But it just don't work with me. I'm moving out and tell him for me that I won't co-operate with whatever he had planned."

"But, Kaoru…"

"Mother, I made my decision."

Then, Kaoru walked into her room and beguntossing all the stuff she could fit into the suitcases she had. Misao helped her.

"But what about money? How can you support yourself?" her mother asked, walking into Kaoru's room.

"I can get a job. I worked as a waitress in America before. No biggie, so you don't need to worry about me."

Her mother nodded and walked out silently, she knew that there was no changing Kaoru's mind.

When Kaoru and Misao were done with the packing, they walked out.

"Bye mother, I'll keep in touch." Kaoru said softly. She need not be angry at her mother, it wasn't her fault.

"Bye Kaoru." Her mother said back, smiling lightly.

Misao and Kaoru walked out of the apartment.

* * *

**Woah! It's done! Please read and review! Feedback is always appreciated! **

**Ah, happy belated v day!**

**Love ya all.**

**KatsunoCZ**


	7. The Iwasaki's New Waitress

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Ahoy all the readers and reviewers out there! Thanks a bunch for all the reviews and I hope you all like this chapter! Please let me know what you think. Tell me what you don't like. Hate it or love it, please leave a review!**

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 7**

Kaoru begun unpacking to put her things into her new room. Misao came in, holding two cups of tea. "Tea?"

"Thank you, Misao." Kaoru said, grateful.

Misao smiled. "No problem."

Then, they sat in silence for a while.

Misao spoke again. "Are you sure you are going to be okay in class tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

"People are going to be nasty to you. Well, not all of them but it's enough to torture someone…and Suzukaze too."

"Ah, let them be nasty. If they go too far, they don't know who they are messing with. And Suzukaze…I don't give a damn."

Misao laughed.

"The thing I'm worried about is getting a job. I was thinking…is it possible for me to get a job as a waitress in The Iwasaki's?" Kaoru asked.

"Why do you want to work at The Iwasaki's? You're smart, I'm sure you can get a better job than that."

"Yeah but I want a part-time job, I can only work nights because I have classes during the day. Those jobs that pay well are usually full day and very hectic, too busy and time consuming for me anyway…."

"Oh. So you'll work as a waitress?"

"Yeah. It doesn't have to be The Iwasaki's, just any café or restaurant near this flat will do. I had experience as a waitress before, so I guess it won't be so bad…"

"We can go ask around."

"Yeah, that is the only job I can think of. Can't travel too far for work, can't afford a car anyway…"

"Wait, you know how to drive?"

"What? I didn't know!"

Kaoru laughed. "Now you do. I used to drive around these two brothers that I was living next door to in USA."

"Really? Isn't it dangerous to hang around guys alone?"

"Nope. These two are like brothers to me. Their names are Sanosuke and Yahiko. Both of them studied in Princeton as well."

"Does that mean they might know Soujiro?"

"I've never hear them mention before, Sanosuke should be graduating soon but Yahiko still have a few more years to go."

"Are they handsome?"

Kaoru laughed. "Sano is very tall and he has brown eyes and hair. Good-looking. Yahiko has black hair and eyes and their personalities are pretty much the same. Honest and generous. They just try to act tough, that's all…"

"It sounds like you guys are really close."

"We are. They are always the ones who make me feel better when I get dumped by guys."

"Oh. What? 'Always'?"

"Yeah. My boyfriends were always the ones breaking it off with me. The problem is, I'm always hopelessly in love with them …"

"Woah! I didn't know!"

"Yeah." Kaoru smiled.

"Don't you feel crappy when they dump you?"

"Sure I do. That is what Sano and Yahiko is there for, to bring me out of the darkness."

"I've never been dumped before."

"Trust me, it hurts like shit if you take the relationship seriously."

"I mean, I've never have a real relationship."

"You don't?"

"Yeah."

"Ah, you will soon."

Kaoru's hand phone begun to ring. It was an unknown number. Kaoru picked it up. "Hello?" she said cautiously.

"It's Dr.Yukishiro Enishi," a voice said.

"Oh hi, Yukishiro-san. How did you get my number?"

"Your father gave it to me."

"Oh, look, Yukishiro-san. I'm actually quite busy right now, so I'm going to hang up okay?"

"Wait!"

Kaoru stopped proceeding to press the button.

"I know that Kamiya-sama had told you about being engaged to me…" Enishi continued.

"Yukishiro-san, I'm not in the mood right now. What my father promised you is without my consent, so I-"

Enishi cut her short. "I know that and I'm sorry. I know that you're upset and I just want to let you know that I'm patient and I can wait…"

"Don't, Yukishiro-san. I'm already seeing someone else."

An awkward silence.

Enishi finally spoke again. His face was strained, trying very hard to sound cheerful. "It doesn't matter. How about let's just forget about the engagement thing and start over as friends?"

"hmmm…"

"Please, Kaoru…you know that I'm actually nice."

"Okay. But only as friends. As far as I'm concerned, the engagement never existed."

"As you wish."

"Okay."

"Friends?"

"Friends."

Enishi laughed. "That's good. Finally, now I can sleep! I've been worrying the past few days!"

Kaoru laughed as well. "Yeah, I'm glad that we solved this out as well. So, I'm going to hang up now, okay?"

"Okay."

"Bye, Yukishiro-san."

"Bye Kaoru."

Kaoru pressed the button and sighed, then she realized that Enishi had called her 'Kaoru' instead of 'Kamiya-san' as he usually did.

"Who was that?"Misao asked.

"The man my father engaged me to."

"Oh. So I guess that you guys have sorted it out?"

"Yeah."

"That's good."

Kaoru smiled.

* * *

**Monday morning…**

Kaoru and Misao cycled to the university together. People begun whispering and pointing at her and it was getting onto Kaoru's nerves. Then, a big guy came up to Kaoru.

"So, is Suzukaze any good?"he sneered, a teasing smile on his face.

"I'm sorry?"Kaoru asked, trying to remain calm.

"Don't pretend anymore, Kamiya. Why did you even come back?"

"I'm not pretending."

The guy laughed nastily. Kaoru glared at him.

"So, is he that good for you to sacrifice your reputation? I never thought that he had it in him. Thought that he was gay, I guess I was wrong."

"I don't know what you've heard, but it's all not true and you better fuck off before I get pissed."

"What? Whatcha gonna do? So answer me, is he good in bed? Any special skills he used that you'd recommend?" the guy laughed, pushing her roughly at the shoulders. Misao was about to say something when Kaoru held up her hand to stop her.

"What you guys have you have made up is all not true. Only three days missing from class and you people are already making it such a big deal. You all should be proud of your imagination to cook up something like this." Kaoru said, her voice dangerously calm, her eyes looking straight into his, cold and hard. A wicked smile was playing on her lips. She paused for effect. "As for what I am going to do, I'm going to make you wish you were never born."

The big guy's face paled, then, it turned into embarrassment, his face a bright angry red. "What! You fucking bitch!" he growled.

"What? Whatcha gonna do?" Kaoru retorted, mimicking him.

By then, there were lots of people were crowding around them, watching the show.

"You fucking bitch!" the big guy shouted and threw a punch at Kaoru.

Misao closed her eyes. But the punch never touched Kaoru's face. There was a tensed a silence.

Misao opened her eyes slowly.

Kaoru's hand was over the guy's big fist, a smirk on her face. Misao wondered how Kaoru's small fragile hands had the strength to hold up against him and stopped his punch. Then, Kaoru's smiled widened and in a flash of a moment the guy was slammed onto the ground, behind her.

She looked down at him menacingly, "Don't you even touch me. You'll regret it."

For a moment no one could recognize Kaoru. She was not like the quiet or calm Kaoru they usually see. She was cold, ruthless and dangerous, a power radiating about her. Misao ran after her as she walked away from the big guy. The big guy was still on the ground, too shocked to move and the rest of the people just stared. They were surprised as well. Kaoru was so fast that they only saw a brief moment of what she did to him. They never thought that she could defend herself and was capable of something like this.

* * *

"Kaoru-chan!" Misao called, trying very hard to keep up with Kaoru's long and fast strides. 

Kaoru turned, her face gloomy.

"Are you okay?" Misao asked worriedly.

Then, Kaoru's dark expression softened and she smiled. "You should be asking the big guy just now."

Misao laughed. "Yeah I should. What did you do to him?"

"I back lifted him and slammed him onto the ground."

"What? Where did you get all the strength?"

"That can be done by all people even if you don't have a lot of strength. Just by applying the correct amount of pressure and certain angles, you can lift a person over and slam him down behind you."

"Wow, where did you learn that?"

"My dad taught me. That is the only time I'm glad that he make decisions for me and made me learn how to fight."

"You should teach me sometime."

"Sure."

"And I'm sure they won't bother you now, those stupid people."

"I hope so."

"Definitely. You scared the hell out of them just now, Kaoru-chan. Even the big guy was hurting real bad."

"Really? I'm sorry."

"Don't be! He deserves it!"

* * *

**In America…**

Sayo was sitting in an Italian Restaurant with a group of friends. They were talking gesticulately with each other when they suddenly stopped and begun to gape at something. Sayo followed their gazes. It was the guy who had helped her a few days ago.

The spiky brown haired young man. He had just came in with a beautiful woman beside him. Her hair was black and her eyes a vivid blue colour. Could it be his girlfriend? Then, a shorter guy followed in, baring resemblance with the guy who helped her.

Her friends were staring at them unashamedly.

Sayo waved her hands in front of them. "Hello? What are you guys staring at?"

"Shhh!" they hissed.

Sayo sat back and let her friends continue to stare at the brown haired guy. Then, one of her friends, Tracy got up and went to talk to him.

"Who is that you guys are goggling at?" Sayo asked again, annoyed at being ignored.

"Sorry, Sayo. The tall guy Tracy is talking to is Sanosuke Sagara, the woman is Megmi Takani and the shorter guy is Sano's brother, Yahiko,"her friend, Anne replied.

_**Oh…so that is his name...Sanosuke Sagara.**_

"Then why are you guys still goggling at him? He is obviously very attached."

"Don't be silly Sayo. They are not together. They are close friends, that's all. Megumi is together with another guy. Aoshi Shinomori. And it's a shame that he's taken. Aoshi is such a hunk."

Sayo nodded. "But where did you guys come to know them? I don't see them around the campus."

"We went on the summer camping trip that you couldn't go, and it turned out that other Universities participated in that trip as well. We met them there."

"Oh." Sayo said. She looked at Sanosuke and decided that he was actually quite handsome. She liked his lazy smile and his good natured laughs. He was laughing heartily at something that Tracy was saying when he noticed her looking at him.

Sayo gave a small smile.

He walked over to their table and rumpled her hair playfully again. "Run into any trouble lately?" he asked, his brown eyes kind.

Sayo shook her head. "Nope. I want to thank you again for helping me out the other say."

"No problem."

"Wait, you two know each other?" Tracy asked, confused.

"Yeah, Sagara-san helped me to retrieve my bag when some guy tried to steal it from me." Sayo explained.

Sano nodded, smiling.

So all of them were introduced to Sayo formally. Then, they wnet back to their tables to their meals. But Sayo couldn't help glancing at Sanosuke. He was tall, kind and good looking.

"Sayo!" Tracy said, smiling.

"Hmm?"

"You lucky! Where did you meet Sano?"

"You know, the street where we usually meet for our shopping sprees?"

"Oh…" Tracy said, then she leaned in confidentially. "You know, Sano is quite a catch."

"Oh?"

"Christ, of course!"

"well, I just know him so of course I don't know anything about him."

"Well, he is studying law in Princeton. He doesn't fool around with women and he is rich. He doesn't spent money unwisely as well, but he is a nice guy, always helping people out and being generous."

"Wow, and he doesn't have a girlfriend?"

"He used to like Megumi..but…"

"But she refused him and got together with Aoshi instead." Anne said, cutting into the conversation.

"Oh." Sayo said, then she went back to look at her food, deep in thought.

**_We probably won't meet again…our universities are so far from each other…_**

* * *

Kaoru was in the lecture theatre, listening to Professor Suzukaze. People were still pointing at whispering but Kaoru just ignored them. At least no one dared come up and mock at her again. Professor Suzukaze gave a surprise test that day. Kaoru knew that he did it on purpose. It was a test based on the topics which were covered when she was not present in class. That stupid bastard really hated her.

When the class was over, Professor Suzukaze asked Kaoru to stayed behind while the rest of the class sniggered and shift out of the theatre as slowly as she could.

"Ms. Kamiya." Professor Suzukaze said.

"Yes, sir?" Kaoru said as calmly as she could, wondering what he wanted to say to her.

"You been absent from class for three days last week. And your father said that you ran away…and are you aware of what you've done is causing what kind of rumors been spread around?"

"Yes, I am. But I did not run away like what my father had said. I was sick, that's all. And the rumors that the others are spreading is not because of anything I said. They made it up, and I don't see why any of this is my fault at all."

"Right, so you are saying that you are not wrong at all?"

"Yes, sir. I've done no wrong. I am an adult, I can take care of myself and you don't always have to believe whatever my father tells you."

Professor Suzukaze stared hard at her and Kaoru stared bravely back.

Finally, Professor Suzukaze sighed, "You can go now."

Kaoru nodded and walked away. She didn't even bother to explain anything to him. It was not necessary; it would only make things more complicated.

Now, she had to look for Shougo.

* * *

Shougo was painting in the studio. He looked up briefly when Kaoru came in but went back to his work immediately. Silent. 

He was probably angry.

Kaoru put down her bag and went to him. "Shougo?"

Shougo continued to ignore her.

Kaoru touched his shoulder, "I'm sorry, for not showing up or letting you know that I was sick."

Shougo nodded stiffly, he stood up and tore a piece of paper out from a notebook. "Give me your handphone number so that I can contact you."

Kaoru nodded, smiling. She scribbled her number on the paper hastily and as she handed him the paper, she pecked Shougo on the cheek.

Shougo was surprised and he actually blushed! Kaoru laughed. "So, we cool now?"

Shougo nodded uncertainly, "Let's paint."

So they sat down and begun painting. Kaoru begun to hum happily to herself, she had not touch the paintbrush for a while. Shougo turned to look at her.

"Why are you so happy?" he asked, frowning.

Kaoru turned towards him, confused. "What?"

"Saitou helped you right?"

"How did you know?"

"I called him and he told me."

"Oh, but that is not why I am happy."

"He didn't touch you, did he?" Shougo asked, his eyes looking intensively into her eyes. Kaoru stared back uncertainly. **_How did he know? Did Saitou tell him?_** Kaoru looked away, blushing slightly.

"It's all right, I know…" Shougo said dully, his voice gloomy. "Just…"

"Just what?" Kaoru asked.

"Just be careful, he is not the commitment type."

Kaoru nodded. She thought about what Shougo had just said. But actually, she knew that Saitou was not the commitment type as well. Unexpected things happened and she wasn't able to resist the intense attraction.

She went back to painting, ignoring Shougo's constant glances. She wouldn't worry yet, she need not be careful yet as well. Saitou had not even called her yet. He might have forgotten everything that happened between them already….which may be a good thing for her…so that she won't fall so deep…

* * *

Misao was already there waiting for her.

"What took you so long?" she asked.

"Sorry, I got caught up with painting."

"It's all right. We are heading over to The Iwasaki's to see if there is a job opening for you right?"

"Yeah."

* * *

"I guess we can give you a try…you are hired." Tae said. 

"Really? Arigato!" Kaoru exclaimed.

Tae laughed. "So here is your uniform," she handed her a package. "And you'll need to be here by five and work ends around eleven. Is that okay?"

"Yeah."

"Besides from the pay from the restaurant, you'll get tips from customers as well."

Kaoru nodded eagerly.

"So, I'll see you tomorrow?" Tae asked.

"Of course!"

* * *

Kaoru took a look at the uniform she was going to wear. 

A white apron, with frills at the sides and a tight A-line skirt which just end above her knees. A pinstriped long sleeved button-up shirt. Not too bad…

She tried it on and walked to Misao's room.

"So what do you think?" Kaoru asked, turling around.

Misao smiled. "You look great. I never thought that anyone could look good in uniforms, but you sure do."

Kaoru looked pleased. "Thank you."

* * *

**The Next Day…**

Kaoru rushed from the campus to The Iwasaki's. She changed into her uniform and came out of the changing room. Tae took a look at her and nodded approvingly.

"Come, let me tie your hair up into a bun." Tae said.

"Why?" Kaoru asked, she like her high ponytail.

"It's a dress code for the Iwasaki waitresses, except for the ones with short hair. But the others all have to have their hair tied up into a bun."

"Oh…" Kaoru replied and followed Tae.

* * *

She learned what she was suppose to do and got to know all the other waitresses and and waiter's as well. She made good friends with Tae, the woman who ran the restaurant and she enjoyed company of the chefs inside. 

Kaoru liked her work and she found herself giving her all in the job. The customers who sat at the tables assigned to her adored her and left her quite good tips. And Kaoru appreciated them for it.

She liked earning her own money and not depending on anyone, it almost reminded her of her life in America.

* * *

Okita Souji had been watching her for days. He had always enjoyed coming to the Iwasaki's ever since his good friend Enishi introduced it to him. But Enishi he himself did not have that much time to come here always so Okita always came alone. 

It was obvious that she was new around here; he had never seen her here before. He took care to always sit at the tables she didn't serve so that he could watch her from far. It was not that she was clumsy or anything, she was swift and sharp with her movements but she was different. There was a glow about her, her blue eyes always sparkling. She did her job with enthusiasm and he liked that. She was slender, her uniform fitting her perfectly and her rich raven hair was tied up in a bun. He could never study her features up close but he knew that she had creamy, milky skin and that whenever she walked by the tables with the trays or plates, the men would always turn to stare. But she never seemed to notice it at all. Either she really didn't notice or she just didn't care.

Could she be a student? He noticed that she only worked nights and from her the way she looked at people; she looked very naïve and innocent. She could only be eighteen or nineteen…

Okita decided that he was ready to sit at the tables she served the next day. He couldn't wait to find out more about her.

* * *

**A/N: This chapter is done! People, people, Please review to let me know what you guys think. Feedback is always appreciated! **

**Okay, here is a survey:**

**Who do you all think Kaoru should end up with? Saitou, Okita, Shougo or Enishi?**

**Who is the favourite male character you all like the most here?**

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**Okies! Thanks a bunch if you would let me know!**

**Kaori-Angel: Gomen ne for the grammar and for not updating sooner! Thanks for all the compliments and I hope you like this chapter! I enjoy receiving ur reviews!**

**tooqiE: Hahaha…sorry for not updating sooner! Thank you for all your nice compliments! Katsuno blushes Thanks! Really…! I hope you like this chapter, review again!**

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**Jrz: 'daughter', congrats on winning the basketball match, dude. Woah! Hahaha…thanks for reviewing and for always being there! Haha, I only watch the first part of Meet The Fockers, I didn't bother finish watching it cos I thought that the first one was funnier….though the baby was really REALLy cute and intelligent.**

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**Kura-sama: hahaha…I think lots of people is going to fight for our dear Kaoru-chan…and I can't wait to write that part! I'm happy that you like this story! Let me know what you think of this chapter and thanks for reviewing!**

**Again people….pls REVIEW!**


	8. Complications

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

**Hey there, all my darling readers. Thank you all for all your support and your wonderful reviews. They make me very, very happy! I hope that you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 8**

Enishi was in Koishijiro's office, sitting in front of his boss's desk.

"So, have you called her yet?" Koishijiro asked.

Enishi nodded, a smile on his lips. "I've patched things up with her."

Koishijiro nodded approvingly. "She is still your fiancé even though she is very strongly against this idea right now. She didn't say anything to you that might make you change your mind about marrying her, did she?"

Enishi laughed. "Even if she did, I wouldn't change my mind. I will marry her, no matter what. But I couldn't be on her bad side, so I told her that we could just start over as friends."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

"That's clever of you."

Enishi grinned.

* * *

Kaoru changed quickly into her uniform, and apologized to Tae for being late. Tae, being the nice woman she was, told her that it was okay. 

Kaoru thanked her and walked out to start doing her job.

There weren't many people in the restaurant. It was after all, only 5:20pm. Then, a young man with dark brown hair came in and sat down at one of the tables that she was supposed to serve.

Kaoru grabbed a menu and walked towards the table.

"Here is the menu, sir," she said, smiling warmly. The young man looked up at her and stared at her, his eyes inspecting her face.

Kaoru kept smiling and tried to ignore his scrutiny.

Finally the young man smiled and said, "It's all right, I don't need the menu. I would like green tea and the restaurant's handmade cookies."

Kaoru nodded, still smiling, scribbling down the order. "Right away."

Then, she walked off to get his order.

* * *

Okita watched her walked off, his eyes still lingering on her. 

She was beautiful, even more magnificent up close.

Her silky black hair was scooped up into an elegant bun, delicate strands falling about her face gracefully. Her eyes were a vivid blue, her nose just right and her lips were soft and pink. Looking at her just now stopped his mind from working for a moment, and she continued to smile so sweetly at him and his heart stopped. Okita had struggled to tell her his order without stuttering.

Then, watching her walked away, he wanted her near again. He wanted to touch the milky, smooth skin of hers and feel the exquisite clearness of her face.

He had managed to look at her name tag on her uniform.

_**Kaoru…**_

What a nice name.

He watched her put the plate of cookies and the tea onto a tray. She was still smiling. There was something funny about her Japanese accent, but he couldn't quite put it in place.

* * *

She was walking towards him again, then she placed the cookies and the tea on the table carefully. "Here you go, sir." 

"Thank you, Kaoru," he replied, smiling warmly at her.

She looked surprised at being addressed by her name. "You're welcome, sir."

Okita laughed. "I'm Souji Okita, calling me 'sir' makes me feel old."

Kaoru nodded, smiling back at him softly. "Okay, Souji-san. Enjoy your tea."

With that Kaoru walked away.

* * *

That man, Souji Okita was handsome. His eyes were brown and sparkling with mischief. He reminded a little of Sanosuke, only that Okita was shorter and more soft-looking. 

Kaoru dismissed her thoughts and went on serving the other customers.

* * *

Okita waved at Tae and asked her to come over. He had become good friends with Tae since he came here quite frequently. 

Tae smiled at him, "Souji-san!"

Okita nodded, "Tae-san."

"How are you today?" Tae asked kindly.

"Good, never been better…" Okita said as his eyes shifted to Kaoru when she passed by.

Tae followed his gaze and smiled at him knowingly. "You have your eye on our Kaoru-chan, ne?"

Okita turned back to Tae and was about to say something when Tae cut him off again, "I saw you just now, smiling and talking to her, you even told her your name."

Okita nodded. "Yeah, she didn't even seem surprised when I told her my name, it is like she didn't recognize it."

"Of course she didn't. She just came back to Japan from America."

"Oh, so that explained her funny Japanese accent."

"Yeah, but she is really a nice person. Very honest and generous."

Okita nodded and continued to watch Kaoru.

"She studies in the same university as my sister." Tae added.

"Tsubame?"

"Yeah."

"How old is Tusbame?"

"She is turning nineteen this year."

"So Kaoru will be nineteen too?"

"No, she is twenty-four this year."

"How did you know?"

"I hired her, so of course there are forms that all employees have to fill out."

"Oh, twenty-four and still in university?"

"Further studies."

"What kind of further studies?"

"I don't know. That you have to ask her yourself, Souji-san."

Okita laughed. "You know very well that I can't do that. I can't just go up to her and ask her things. I think I'll talk to Tsubame first."

"Oh, so you are opting for the sneaky way."

Okita grinned roguishly. "You can't blame me. I need introductions, Tae-san."

"Whatever, Souji-san. You can go talk to Tsubame-chan if you want."

"Yeah, I'll call her."

Then, one of the customers called at Tae. "Tae-san!"

"Coming!" Tae called back cheerily. She looked at Okita and smiled again. "Ja! Souji-san."

* * *

**Saturady, the day where Misao, Kaoru, Tsubame and Soujiro was suppose to go out together.**

**At Kaoru and Misao's flat…**

"Kaoru-chan! What should I wear?" Misao whined.

Kaoru laughed. "Misao, I told you! The jeans and the tank top look just fine!"

"But I want everything to be perfect, I want to look pretty enough…"

Kaoru sighed again. "You are pretty! We've been dressing you for hours and you look great! Stop changing what you want to wear already!"

Misao pouted. "Okay, if you say so. What are you going to wear yourself?"

Kaoru sighed again. "Why, just like this of course…"

Misao looked at Kaoru's jeans and simple white t-shirt. "What! No, you are not wearing that, you look messy!"

Kaoru laughed. "I always look messy and it is not like as if I'm dressing to impress anyone. Unlike someone…"

Misao smacked Kaoru playfully on the shoulder. "Kaoru-chan!"

Kaoru jerked a little from Misao's push.

"But, Kaoru…you should try to dress up more, or else I will look so obvious that I am dressing to please." Misao added worriedly.

Kaoru sighed. "If we wait for me to change, we'll be late and you won't make a good impression! Let's just go! They won't notice!"

The truth was, Kaoru was lazy and too tired to change. She was exhausted from her part-time job, her studies and art. She actually wanted stay in today, just to sleep. In the evening she still have work at The Iwasaki's. Plus, she could not sleep properly at night with her mind always drifting to Hajime Saitou. He still had not called her yet, and she was getting anxious. On the other hand, she was telling herself that it was a good thing that everything ended before it could start.

She sighed again and called to Misao, who was still scrutinizing herself in the mirror, "Let's go Misao-chan...or we'll really be late."

Misao looked away from the mirror reluctantly and walked to Kaoru, who was now standing beside the front door.

"Are you sure I look all right?" Misao asked again, looking at Kaoru.

Kaoru sighed tiredly, "Yes, Misao. You look gorgeous, really radiant. No one will fail to notice you, I am sure."

Misao smiled, "Okay! Let's go!"

Kaoru rolled her eyes and followed Misao out of the door.

_**Finally!**_

* * *

Tsubame and Soujiro were already waiting at the café where they were supposed to meet.

"Tsubame-chan!" Misao exclaimed, bouncing up to their table. Tsubame got up from her sit and begun to talk to Misao excitedly, Soujiro looked up at them with interest and Kaoru could see that he recognized Misao.

"Kaoru-chan!" Misao called to her. "Come here!"

"Hai, hai…" Kaoru murmured, she was still a distance from them. She didn't have so much inexhaustible energy like Misao. She was practically dragging her foot on the ground.

Tsubame and Soujiro's gazed at Kaoru and Kaoru waved at them weakly.

"Is that Kaoru sempai?" Tsubame asked Misao, awed.

"Yeah." Misao said proudly.

"I've met you two before…" Soujiro said, looking at Misao, smiling warmly.

Misao blushed. "Yeah, Kaoru-chan and I were at The Iwasaki's a few weeks ago…sorry, I made a fool of myself."

Soujiro shook his head, "No, it was nice that you two suggested me as the employee of the week. You did not make a fool of yourself."

Misao blushed even more. "So, did you become the employee of the week for that week?"

Soujiro laughed, "Yeah, thanks to you and your friend."

Tsubame wasn't paying attention to Misao and Soujiro's conversation. She was too busy looking at Kaoru to notice anything.

Kaoru finally reached her destination. "Hello," she said, leaning against the table for support.

Misao introduced Kaoru to Tsubame, and Tsubame introduced Kaoru and Misao to Soujiro.

"I have another friend coming to join us later, is that okay?" Tsubame asked.

The rest nodded and they all settled in their chairs and begun chatting.

Misao was busy talking to Soujiro and Tsubame was occupied with staring and questioning Kaoru at the same time.

Kaoru tried her best to answer her questions without her mind wondering off to dreamland. Tsubame asked her about Medicine, studying techniques and Professor Suzukaze. Kaoru answered her earnestly and laughed heartily when they bitched about Suzukaze together.

Tsubame looked at Kaoru's laughing face and pondered why Okita Souji, that distant and secretive man needed an introduction with someone as friendly and out-going as Kaoru. She was sure that if he would just go up and talk to her, Kaoru would respond to him.

He would be coming soon but Tsubame could see that Kaoru was tired, though she appeared enthusiastic.

* * *

Okita had learned that Kaoru's last name was Kamiya. 

He also found out that she was further studying in university on medicine and that she used to be in Princeton University in America. He also heard from Tsubame that Kaoru was extremely intelligent and witty.

No one had noticed yet that he was now walking towards the café, though they were all sat at a table next to the window.

Kaoru was talking to Tsubame and from Tsubame's awed expressions, he could see that Tsubame admired her very much.

He also noticed that Kaoru wasn't smiling as animatedly as he had seen her in The Iwasaki's, and her shoulders were also slightly slumped.

She was tired.

Okita walked into the café.

* * *

"Hello, Souji-san!" Tsubame said when Okita appeared in front of their table. 

Kaoru looked up and recognized him immediately. **_So this is the 'friend' Tsubame-chan was talking about. It is such a small word…everyone seemed to know each other…_**

Kaoru smiled gently at him when Tsubame did the introductions.

Okita sat himself next to Kaoru, and studied her. Kaoru felt his scrutiny and Tsubame kept quiet and watched on with interest.

Kaoru ignored him and continued to chomp away her spaghetti, hoping that he would look away and start a conversation with someone else.

But no, he didn't. He stayed right where he was and continued watch her.

Kaoru finally turned towards him and stared back.

"Didn't anyone tell you that it's rude to stare at a girl when she is eating like a pig?" she asked teasingly, smiling.

Okita gaped at her and could not reply…her deep, intense blue eyes were sparkling mischievously at him and he could feel his heart beating faster.

He laughed. "Sorry."

Kaoru laughed as well, "It's all right…"

* * *

Later, they decided to go to a movie and Kaoru find herself not being able to take all the noise coming from the big-screened film. She whispered to the others that she needed to get some fresh air and that she would wait for them outside. 

After she went out, Okita followed her.

He found her sitting at one of the benches outside the cinema, her eyes closed. He went to sit next to her, and Kaoru's eyes flew opened.

"Are you okay?" he asked, concerned.

Kaoru smiled lightly, "Yeah, just a little tired."

Okita leaned close to her, "Than you should go home and rest."

Kaoru nodded, her eyes closing again. "Maybe I should after I get enough energy to get up."

Finally, Kaoru stood up and said, "Souji-san, could you tell the others that I need to go first and that I'm sorry?"

Okita smiled, "No problem. You are going home, right?"

"Yeah…" Kaoru mumbled.

"Than I think I should bring you home,"

"It's all right, I'll be fine on my own. You'll be missing the movie."

"I don't care about the movie, but it'll be dangerous if I let you walk out there alone with you being so unfocused. You wouldn't be able to scream 'help' if someone try to harm you."

Okita was right, but she didn't know him so well too. "But…"

"Don't protest anymore, Kaoru…I won't hurt you. I'm just bringing you home," he said, as though he had read her mind.

Kaoru nodded and decided that having Okita bringing her home would be the safer choice.

* * *

They were going up the stairs when Kaoru stumbled and almost fall off. Okita grabbed her and held her close to him. 

"Good thing that I persuaded you to let me bring you up…" he said jokingly.

"Yeah…" Kaoru murmured, suddenly aware of how close they were.

Okita put his head to her hair and inhaled deeply. She smelled like fresh jasmine…making him so dizzy in the head. He also noticed how small she was, and how his arm seemed so big around her tiny waist. Her small hands were holding onto his shoulders for support and Okita wanted it to stay like this, just him holding her in the silence.

"Souji-san…" Kaoru said, more firm in the voice this time.

Okita let go off her instantly, "Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm fine now and my flat is on this floor. Thank you for bringing me home and walking me up here," Kaoru said, smiling. She unlocked her flat's front door and went in.

"No problem. Take care, Kaoru."

Kaoru nodded and closed the door behind her.

* * *

She walked into her room and slammed herself onto the bed. For a moment there when Okita was holding her, she thought that he had pressed himself against her hair and held her closer than necessary. Or maybe she was just hallucinating because she was so tired. 

_**The heck with it…I'll sleep first…**_

* * *

Kaoru managed to sleep enough to go to work that night, though she was still a little dazed.

Just as she walked past a table full of sniggering males, one of them smacked her on the butt. She turned around and glared at him, but because she didn't want to cause a scene or lose her job, she let it go and continued walking.

The man grabbed her wrist roughly, "So feisty, eh? Don't go yet, babe."

He was obviously drunk.

Kaoru tried hard to wrestle her wrist away from his firm grip. The whole restaurant came to a silence as the customers witnessed the scene before them.

Tae gasped and rushed over, "Sir! Please, let go of her!"

The man laughed, "Back off woman! What's your problem? This is a restaurant right? And you people are suppose of service the customers to the best, right?"

Kaoru cried out in pain as the man tightened his hold on her wrist. He was going to crush her bones!

Tae glared at the man angrily, helpless. "We are supposed to serve our customers to the best of our ability, but what you are doing now is hurting my employee! Let go off her and leave my restaurant at once!"

The man chuckled deviously, "Who do you think you are, woman? Ordering me around this way?"

Then, he raised a free hand to slap Tae.

Kaoru looked at him in alarm. Instinctively she kicked the man hard in the groin and the man staggered back painfully. He fell onto the floor.

"Don't you dare touch her," Kaoru said menacingly, glowering at the man.

The man was very, very angry by then. He got up and so did the rest of his friends. Kaoru was ready to fight when the man suddenly fell onto the floor again with a loud thump.

She looked up and saw Saitou standing in front of her. There he stood in his black suit, towering over all of them.

Kaoru almost didn't believe that it was him, his sudden appearance sent flutters through her heart and she watched him, studying him all over again. Savouring every detail.

"Leave the restaurant at once or you will be truly sorry," Saitou said calmly, his golden eyes hard on the man.

The man who had hurt didn't move but moved closer to Saitou. "Who the hell do you think you are, trying to show off in front of the ladies? Stay out of my business."

"I am," Saitou gestured at Kaoru, "this lady's attorney. I can assure you that we'll be suing you soon and by the end of it, all your property will be lost. Leave at once and maybe the lady will spare you."

The man glared angrily at Kaoru and Kaoru stared back fiercely. The man snorted, "Let's go."

The rest of the men followed after him.

Kaoru's mouth hung opened. She couldn't believe it! Saitou was here, the man she had been thinking about all the time was here, right in front of her and defending her!

_**Saitou…**_

* * *

**A/N:**Yeay, I'm glad that this chapter is finally done! I took quite a while with it because I kept pondering over the interaction between Kaoru and Okita. I also tried my best to edit it, so if you guys notice any grammar errors, please forgive me. Do tell me about them.

**Notes on Amakusa Shougo, Sayo and Okita:**

**Amakusa Shougo** and **Sayo** (also known as **Magdaria** ) appeared only in the RK anime, in the **Shimabara Arc**. They lead the Christians in Japan to fight for their faith together. Amakusa Shougo is their leader. Later, they were betrayed and Sayo was killed by a gun shot by one of the men who had betrayed them. Though she was already very sick with tuberculosis at that time, the gun shot was fatal. She died in Sanosuke's arms.

**Souji Okita** appeared both in the RK anime and manga very briefly. He is the leader of the 1st **Shisengumi **squad. He is always smiling and cheerful (always teasing **Saitou**!) He is also very skilled with the katana, perhaps even more powerful than **Saitou**. He doesn't let his emotions get to him while he slays people. In fact, he is a character model for **Seta Soujiro**. Okita died young because of tuberculosis.

I hope that you find the info useful and do review to let me know what you all think! Feedback is always appreciated!

**gabyhyatt: **thank you for letting me know what pairing you preferred and I hope you like this chapter!

**Kaori-Angel:** Woah, thanks a bunch for reviewing again and letting me know what you think. It's great to know what every reader notice. Hahaha…Enishi is just really cunning and sneaky, eh? Yeah…if Enishi do show up at The Iwasaki's (he is going to soon!)…I agree with you…holy crap! (it's going to be VERY interesting! Wink wink!) Hahaha let me know what you think of this chapter!

**tooqie: **thank you! I really like your reviewer name, it's cute! Saitou will be appearing a lot from next chapter on, so no worries, the hot guy is coming back! Thank you for answer to my survey and pls review again!

**FairyMage:** Thank you so much for pointing out my grammar errors! If you notice anymore in this chapter, don't hesitate to le me know! I appreciate it! Thanks also for telling me which parts that you like and I'm glad that you like the fight scene! Do review again!

**ShadowElite**: Hahaha, yeah…I want Kaoru to end up with all the guys, but I can only pair her with one guy only…I haven't decide which! They all seemed so yummy! LOL! Thank you for answering to my survey and I hope that you like this chapter! Pls review again!

**Jrz**: Yo dude, haha…you're welcome. Thanks for reviewing all the time and what have you been doing this days? Hahahhaha…..hope you like this chapter dude.

**nannon**: Thank you! I'm glad that you like the fight scene! Thanks for telling me which pairing you prefer and I think Saitou is so cool too….woahhh…let me know what you think of this chapter!

**tameka**: Thank you for answering to my survey and letting me know what you think of this fic! Sorry there isn't much Sou/Misao interaction here, but there will be some heated action soon! I'm happy that you like the fight scene! Kenshin is going to make an appearance, but only much later…let me know what you think of this chapter, pls review again!

**anime pixie**: wow, thank you so much for all the compliments! (Katsuno blushes as red as Misao) hahaha thanks also for letting me know which pairing you prefer and I hope that you like this chapter! Pls review again!

**random fan**: Wow…I think your review is very cute! Thank you so much for calling this fic a true piece of art! Thank you! Your reasons for me to write a Shougo/Kao pairing is very reasonable…infact, other people wants this pairing as well! LOL. Your review is just so CUTE! I haven't decide yet which guy Kaoru should end up with, my mind is still wavering…but I hope that you like this chapter and pls review again to share with me your thoughts!

**Pixel-the-evil-fairy**: Hey there, thanks for the review and I'm happy that you like the last chapter! What do you think of this one? I'm glad that you like the Kaoru fight scene! (YEAH!)Pls do review again!

**Kura-sama**: WOW. Thank you so much for your review! And thanks for the answer to my survey! (made me happy!) You can find some info on Sayo above, sorry for not providing the info sooner! Sano is in America, in Princeton University. Sayo is studying in America as well. Yeah, Kaoru used to go to the same university as Sano but is forced to move back to Japan by her controlled-freak father (yikes!). Sano and Kaoru will meet again soon, either one of them visiting the other. And there will be some Sano and Kaoru interaction! I hope that you like this chapter and pls review again to let me know what you think!


	9. Saitou is back in the game

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

Hey there all my darling readers. Sorry for this late update. I was having major exams, so I couldn't update as early as I want to. Still, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**Healing By KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 9**

When the restaurant had finally settled down after the drunken men had gone, Kaoru led Saitou to a corner.

"Thank you, Saitou." Kaoru said, looking up anxiously at him.

Saitou looked down at her and sighed, "You're welcome."

"How did you happen to be here?"

"I just walked into the restaurant and saw you growling at that man," Saitou said, a sly smile on his lips, "and that was kind of sexy."

Kaoru blushed, "What!"

Saitou laughed.

"It's not funny! I could have gotten beaten up really badly if you had not appeared. Arigatou, Saitou. This is the second time you've saved me." Kaoru said, smiling gratefully up at him.

Saitou blinked at Kaoru's smile. He had almost forgotten how stunning she was, now every detail of her was overwhelming him again, making him lost his composure. His hands reached up to touch her cheek…and Kaoru looked at him dreamily.

But that moment was lost when Tae rushed over to them.

"Thank you sir for helping us out!" she gushed.

Then, she saw the moment that Kaoru and Saitou were in and moved back quickly, embarrassed. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?"

Kaoru smiled and shook her head, "No, no, Tae. It's all right."

Tae looked at them doubtfully but continued to say, "Thank you, kind sir. What is your name?"

Saitou nodded, "You're welcome. I'm Hajime Saitou."

"Hajime Saitou?" Tae asked unbelievingly. "The Hajime Saitou?"

Kaoru looked at Saitou confusedly. **_'The' Hajime Saitou?_**

Tae turned to Kaoru, "You didn't tell me that you are acquainted to Hajime-san!"

"Huh?" Kaoru responded, even more confused than ever.

Saitou laughed. "All right ladies, I'll need to go now or I will be late for a meeting."

Kaoru turned back to him again and he bent down to kiss her slightly on the cheek. Tae's eyes widened in surprised.

Kaoru blushed and watched him walking out of the restaurant.

Tae turned to Kaoru with a mischievous smile on her face. "Hehehe"

"What!" Kaoru exclaimed, "Would you please explain to me what appeared so amusing to you? And what do you me by 'the' Hajime Saitou?'"

Tae put her hands on Kaoru's shoulders. "Didn't you know? Hajime-san is the best lawyer around here. He has never lost a case before, and so of course he is extremely wealthy and eligible…"

"Right." Kaoru said boredly, she sort of knew about that from Shougo.

"And he had just recently broken up with the famous celebrity, Tokio…and obviously he is now besotted with you!"

That caught Kaoru's attention. **_Tokio? Who was Tokio?_**

"So, so…is Hajime-san your boyfriend?" Tae asked.

Kaoru shook her head weakly, "No."

"No? But he sure behaved like he is!" Tae exclaimed.

"Kaoru!" one of the waiters called. "You are wanted at table 10!"

Kaoru snapped back to attention and rushed off to table 10. Tae was still watching after her.

* * *

**The next day…**

It was Sunday and Kaoru was home alone. Misao was at the University having extra classes and the flat was completely silent.

Kaoru yawned loudly and picked up her Medicine Textbook. Exams were in two weeks time and she had not started studying yet. But actually, it was quite easy for her. She had understood all the facts already and all she needed to do now was to remember them. And it was a good thing that she could remember things easily.

She settled into a couch comfortably, and yawned again before flipping open her textbook.

* * *

The phone was ringing and Okita finally put down his papers to pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Okita! It's me Enishi."

"Oh, how are you?"

"Fine, fine…I'm in love!"

"You always say that, and then you'll get bored and it will start all over again."

"No, no…I'm serious this time…it's only that she doesn't feel the same way…"

Okita laughed, "Oh? Has the mighty Enishi finally met his match?"

"Yeah, but she will learn to love me in time, we are engaged, you see…"

"Gosh, what has been going on with your life? She doesn't love you and she agreed to marry you?"

"No, her father arranged the marriage…"

Okita laughed, "I wish you good luck, my friend."

"Thanks. Oh yeah, I called to congratulate you on your triumphant completion of the new estate you built for that billionaire! What's his name again?"

"Thank you, oh… his name is Otojiro Ito. He seemed very pleased with his new house."

"Do you know that the house was featured in the Architecture Weekly this month? They ran a 10 page special just for you!"

Okita laughed, "Yeah, I know."

"Yeah…we should get together sometime…we haven't done that for a long time. And maybe you can meet my fiancé!" Enishi joked.

Okita laughed again. "Yeah, sure."

Soon, their conversation ended and Okita put down the phone. Enishi, in love? It was too hard to believe…which woman had such a power over him? But then, again…he had never imagine himself wanting a woman as much as he wanted Kaoru…Okita smiled to himself, **_gosh…I might be in love with Kaoru…_**

* * *

****

Kaoru was dozing off when Misao breezed in, slamming the door behind her. Her face pink was with excitement.

"Kaoru-chan!" she gushed dreamily, sinking into the couch next to Kaoru.

Kaoru laughed, "What is it?"

"Soujiro came to the campus!"

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

"Okay…what else happened?"

"So I asked him out on a date!"

"Really!"

Misao giggled, "Yeah, I didn't know what I was thinking! It just came bursting out, I guess I did it because I don't believe he'll ever ask me if I don't make a move first…"

"Makimachi Misao!" Kaoru exclaimed.

"Yes, yes…I know I was outrageous by doing that…he looked a bit shocked himself. But he agreed to go out with me…so I guess everything turned out just fine!" Misao laughed, blushing.

Kaoru smiled and said sincerely, "I'm happy for you…"

Then, Kaoru saw that she needed to go for work and bid Misao a hasty good-bye. She doubted that Misao was even aware that she left.

* * *

Kaoru hurried up to the table that she was supposed to serve and smiled brightly, "What may get for you, sir?"

The man looked up at her and Kaoru realized that it was Enishi and almost winced at the sight of him. **_Damn, why didn't I recognize him?_**

Even if Enishi had agreed that he won't bother her and that they were just friends, Kaoru would still not want to have anything to do with her father.

Enishi seemed surprised and confused, "What are you doing here?"

"I work here." Kaoru replied simply.

"But, I am sure that Koishijiro-sama can provide for you even if you are living on your own now."

"I would like to be independent. There is nothing degrading about being a waitress, you know."

Enishi laughed, "Yeah, I know. I don't mean to offend you. But I'm sure you can get a better job with higher pay. I can help you."

Kaoru smiled politely, "No, it's okay. I like my job."

Enishi laughed again, "Does your father know that you are working here?"

"No." Kaoru answered, looking irritated.

Enishi noticed the look on her face and stopped pressing on the subject immediately.

"What would you like?" Kaoru asked again. She wanted to have the least communication with Enishi as possible.

Enishi gave him her order quickly because he knew what he wanted since he used to come to the restaurant very frequently before.

Kaoru smiled again before she walked away with his order.

Enishi watched her swaying hips as she walked away and smiled softly to himself.

Soon Kaoru came back with his order and placed it in front of him cautiously, "Enjoy," she said tonelessly.

Enishi laughed heartily, "What's wrong?"

Kaoru frowned and pretended that she didn't know what he was talking about, "Huh?"

"I mean, why are you behaving this way? Is it because I am connected to your father and you are still uneasy around me after what happened?"

Kaoru frowned harder and remained silent.

Enishi laughed again, "I told you that we'll start over again as friends, right? Don't worry about your father being my employer, what is said between us, I will not report to him. I will not even tell him that I found out that you work here."

Kaoru just looked at him blankly.

"Look, I am truly sorry about the engagement. But, it's all over, so I would really like to be your friend," Enishi said sincerely.

Kaoru nodded, "Okay."

Enishi smiled.

"Enjoy," Kaoru said more cheerfully this time, before walking away.

* * *

**Next afternoon…**

Okita walked into The Iwasaki's and greeted Tae politely.Tae did not greet him as cheerfully as she would usually do, and he frowned at her, but she just waved it away and mouthed, "I'll talk to you later."

So Okita sat there patiently for Tae, wondering what she might want to say.

Finally Tae came over to his table and sat opposite him.

"What's wrong?" Okita asked.

"I think Kaoru already have a boyfriend."

Okita scowled, "How do you know?"

"Do you know Hajime Saitou?"

"Yes. That lawyer?"

Tae told him about the incident in the restaurant and how Hajime-san had came to the rescue for Kaoru. She also told him how Saitou was behaving towards Kaoru and how she thought that Kaoru really liked Saitou too.

"Did you ask Kaoru that if he is her boyfriend?" Okita asked calmly.

"Yes."

"What did she say?"

"She said that they are not together, but he sure behaved like he is her boyfriend."

"If she said that they are not together, than why are you so worried?"

"You know very well yourself that Hajime Saitou cannot be trusted. He can never be satisfied with just one woman. He discards women as often he changes his shirt. Not only that, he is also cruel and very unfeeling. I understand why he is attracted to Kaoru, for she is very beautiful. But I don't want him to hurt Kaoru. She knows nothing of men as complex as Hajime Saitou."

"Than, why didn't you tell her?"

"How can I? Though I like her a lot, but we are not so close that I could comment on her personal life. Plus, she already told me that she and Hajime-san are not together. She'll just dislike me for telling her all these as I can see that she likes him too."

Okita sighed and tilted his head, as though thinking hard.

"Why are you telling me all this?" he asked.

"I know that you care for Kaoru very much and I know that you are a man who takes relationships seriously. I wouldn't want Kaoru to end up hurt by Hajime Saitou, so I think that we should work together to prevent it."

Okita nodded, "Don't worry, I don't give up so easily even if I am going against someone like Hajime Saitou."

Tae smiled.

* * *

Shougo was standing in front of the entrance of the art building, waiting for her. Kaoru looked at him and waved. He nodded in response and beckoned to her to come towards him.

"Why are you waiting out here, Shougo? Aren't we working on our paintings today?"

Shougo watched her animated face and her bright blue eyes smiling up at him. She was so exquisite that it made his heart ache for he knew that he could not have her now.

"Shougo?" Kaoru asked again, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Shougo nodded solemnly, "Yes, I'm all right. We are not painting today."

"We are not?"

"Yes."

"Than what are we doing?"

"We are going to an art gallery opening; the artist is a friend of mine. I'm hoping that we can learn something from there."

Kaoru nodded, "How will we be going there?"

"We'll drive there."

"Okay."

**On the way to the art gallery…**

Shougo glanced at Kaoru, who was sitting next to him in the passenger's seat. He had actually wanted to continue his painting today, but he could not possibly stand the fact that Kaoru had been drawing only one thing the past few days.

Well, actually not 'one thing'. It was actually a human being.

Hajime Saitou.

A few days ago, he had found her sketches of Saitou, but as much as he disliked her drawing his best friend, he had to admit that the sketches were all amazing work. He asked her about it, and she just beamed at him and told him cheerily that she intended to work on a serious portrait for Hajime Saitou.

He would like it better if she would just draw him. Not Hajime Saitou.

But Shougo also knew that if women fall for his best friend, they wouldn't snap out of it unless they got dumped by Saitou when the game ends. So he would wait patiently for Kaoru. Of course he wouldn't want her to get hurt and he had warned her already. But she did not listen.

They never do.

"Is there something on my face?" Kaoru asked, confused with Shougo's long stare.

Shougo shook his head, "No."

Then, he realized that the traffic light had turned green and he pressed down on the accelerator with extreme force. Kaoru just turned back, confused with Shougo's behaviour.

* * *

Kaoru came home humming a tune to herself happily, Shougo and her had a great time at the art gallery. She got to meet some interesting artists, which was much nicer than meeting the doctors in her father's hospital.

Misao grinned at her, "Hajime-san finally decided to call you?"

Kaoru stopped humming, "Nope, I've not heard from him ever since that day in the restaurant."

"He came to the restaurant?"

Then, Kaoru told Misao briefly about what had happened at The Iwasakis's.

By the end of it, Misao exclaimed, "Gosh! That was so romantic!"

Kaoru shook her head, "No, it's not. I would rather not meet him, so that I won't remember how magnificent he is. He still hasn't call me, like he said he would. It would be better if he and I will never see each other again so I would stop thinking about him."

"Than I think you should move on and try seeing other people. I don't think Hajime Saitou is the man for you as well."

Kaoru's eyes widened in surprise, "Why? Is it because he is connected to the celebrity called Tokio? Who is she anyway?"

"Wow, I'm surprised that you know all that…no it's not because she is his ex, but because he is a womanizer. When you mentioned him the first time, I checked out on him and from what I heard…he had never been serious about any of the relationships he had been in."

"Who is Tokio?" Kaoru asked again.

"She is Japan's most famous female singer now. Wait, I have her CD in my room," Misao replied, getting up from the couch and walking to her room.

Moments later, she walked out with a CD in her hand and sat down on the couch again. Kaoru took the CD from her.

On the cover, Kaoru saw a very beautiful woman with long, silky brown hair and pale white skin. Her heart sank, afraid that she might not be beautiful enough for the man she was falling in love with. Misao saw her reaction, and slapped her playfully on the shoulder.

"Don't be sad! She is not as charismatic as you and she doesn't have blue eyes like yours."

Kaoru nodded wordlessly.

"Plus, there is always that fiancé your father had arranged for you!" Misao added slyly.

Kaoru pushed her back and scowled, feigning annoyance, " Sheesh Misao!"

Misao laughed, "No, no. I was just kidding. How about that friend of Tsubame? If I remember right, his name is Okita or something."

"Yeah, you were too busy looking at Seta-san to notice anything around you," Kaoru teased, "His name is Souji Okita."

"Souji Okita! Are you serious?"

"Yeah…" Kaoru said uncertainly.

"He is that famous architect! You didn't know?"

Kaoru shook her head.

Misao started telling her about the projects that Okita was involved in when Kaoru's cellular phone began to ring.

Kaoru picked it up, "Hello?"

"Hey," a male voice drawled.

Kaoru blushed at hearing the familiar voice. It was Saitou.

"Hi," she said.

"How are you?" Saitou asked.

"I'm fine, doing okay. How about you?"

"Good too. I'm calling you to ask if you would like to go out with me on Thursday night."

Kaoru tensed, "Thursday night?"

"Yes, it's going to be a formal party."

Kaoru laughed, "What do you mean by 'formal'?"

"The party is held by one of my client's company. He would like me to go, and I would like very much to bring you with me. 'Formal' means that...I will need to be in a suit and you'll need to be in a gown."

"I don't see much difference since you wear suits all the time anyway…but don't worry I have dresses."

"So does that mean you'll come with me?"

Kaoru laughed softly, "Yes, is it a date?"

"You bet it is. I'll pick you up at around 7.30pm?"

"Okay."

After they said their goodbyes, Kaoru disconnected the call.

"I suppose that was Hajime-san?" Misao asked, scowling.

Kaoru smiled and nodded, "Yeah, and he asked me to go on a date with him."

"And you are actually going to go with him?"

"Yeah, is that okay?"

Misao looked at Kaoru doubtfully and sighed, "Even if I say that it's not, there is no stopping you right?"

Kaoru laughed and hugged Misao tightly.

"Just be careful and guard your heart…don't get hurt." Misao added.

Kaoru laughed, "I shall guard my heart with care."

* * *

**A/N**: This chapter is done; again I apologize for the delay. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

If there are any grammar mistakes and sentence structuring problems, please tell me about them so I can improve and make it a more likeable fic to read. Thank you!

Thank you all so much for the support and please do review.

I still am not sure who Kaoru should end up with, but most reviewers would like to see her together with Saitou. There is however some who wants her to be with Shougo. I will decide soon, but before that, please read!

Sorry about not being able to write out individual thanks to all my wonderful reviewers.

Thanks to: **tameka, Blood Upon Rain-RiN, Kura-sama, Kaori-Angel, MizzLee, Fairy Mage, anime pixie, Pixel-the-evil-fairy and silverythm**

**Please review again and tell me what you all think!**


	10. The Party

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

Hey there my darling readers, I've updated faster this time round! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 10**

Kaoru looked into the mirror and applied lip gloss to her lips. Suddenly, Misao walked into her room and gasped.

"Knock before you come in, Misao-chan!" Kaoru said. Misao just walked closer and began to circle around Kaoru, her mouth hanging open.

"Kaoru, you're gorgeous!" Misao exclaimed.

Kaoru was a vision of loveliness. Her beautiful raven hair was scooped up elegantly with delicate strands of hair falling about her small face gracefully. Her eyes are bright, framed by sooty black eye lashes and her skin was creamy and radiant. She was dressed in a sleeveless purple dress with a plunging neckline, showing a hint of her bosom.

"Do you think this dress is formal enough? Saitou did not say specifically how formal the party is going to be…" Kaoru said.

"Even if it is not, it wouldn't matter! You look beautiful, absolutely beautiful. Just go and have a good time and don't worry too much."

Kaoru smiled gratefully and nodded before checking her appearance in the mirror again.

"What time is your Hajime-san picking you up?" Misao asked.

"Around 7.30pm…"

"Well, then he is late!"

Kaoru glanced at the clock, "It's 7.35pm, Misao-chan. Only five minutes…"

"A gentleman is supposed to be on time! Plus I don't trust him anyway!"

Kaoru laughed, "Don't worry Misao, it is just a date."

Then, the door bell rang.

Misao sighed, "Your date is here."

Kaoru's eyes lit up, and asked, "You really think I look okay?"

"Yes, you're a stunning. In fact, I almost wished that you look less beautiful so that Hajime-san won't want to play with you anymore."

"Misao…maybe Hajime-san is not playing with me…"

Misao sighed again and then smiled weakly, "Okay, okay. You just go ahead and have a great time. Don't forget about the thing you told me about guarding your heart though."

Kaoru grinned and hugged Misao tightly, "Misao-chan, I really appreciate you for caring about me. I shall guard my heart with care."

Kaoru released Misao from the hug and picked up her white silk shawl and handbag, "Bye bye!"

Misao nodded and watched Kaoru opened the door, revealing a really tall man wearing a black tuxedo. She heard him say 'hello' in a rich, deep voice before Kaoru closed the front door behind her.

Misao sighed.

* * *

Saitou grinned at her and Kaoru blushed. She hated it when he had that affect on her. She also hated how he always appeared so sure of himself. Always so handsome and charismatic.

He looked like a black, graceful wolf and just being near him made her heart beat faster.

He took her hand softly in his and leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips, and then he whispered huskily, "You are exquisite…"

Then, he led her to his black Mercedes Benz and opened the car door for her. Her heart was still jumping and her breathing was quick.

Saitou got in to the driver's seat beside her and smiled wolfishly at her again. Kaoru smiled back and felt afraid, reading the look in his eyes and the intense desire brewing within.

Attempting to distract him so that he'll look away from her lips, Kaoru asked, "Am I dressed formally enough?"

Saitou grinned again and just nodded. Kaoru wished that he'll talk more so that it won't leave her feeling so nervous and anxious.

Who was she going to meet at the party? His friends?

"Where is the party?" Kaoru asked.

"At my client's new estate. I've been his attorney for more than 6 years. More than 200 people are invited."

Kaoru widened her eyes at the number of people been invited. "More than 200?"

Saitou laughed, "Yes, my client is the multi-billionaire Otojiro Ito."

Kaoru nodded weakly. Saitou's world was obviously very different from hers. Though she was not poor, she did not mix with the rich and famous. Saitou however had so many connections, and his ex-girlfriend was a beautiful and famous celebrity! He was obviously very used being around beautiful women who were all fighting for his attention. He was, after all, very rich, handsome and eligible.

Kaoru turned to look at Saitou and studied his side profile, watching the street lamps' light reflecting off his attractive edgy face. Tracing his forehead, to his sharp nose and neck with her eyes, she wondered if she was beautiful enough for him. He had told her that she was 'exquisite' but she could not help but doubt his words. How many times had he whispered the same thing to other women?

* * *

They drove up to a huge white mansion; there were already so many cars and people. All the men and women were dressed so splendidly. Kaoru almost felt like an outsider, she was not used to associating with people that rich and so sure of themselves. She also noticed that the mansion was magnificent, so grand and royal. It was very carefully and beautifully designed, all the edges so précised. The whole mansion was very modern with a slight touch of olden England. It was a great study of art.

Finally, they arrived at the huge entrance where there were many people gathered around. Saitou got out and helped Kaoru out of the car, then, he passed the car keys to the young man waiting on them. People began to glance at their direction, wondering who the new arrival was.

Kaoru felt more nervous than ever, but Saitou placed an arm around her waist reassuringly and usher her forward through the huge wooden door. Kaoru let her legs move together with Saitou's long strides, but inside she was distracted by the number of people and overwhelmed by the surroundings. There were many antique sofas and paintings about everywhere, there was also a large dignified-looking grandfather clock and in the middle of the huge hall was a large fountain supplying an inexhaustible amount of punch. Beautifully-dressed women glided past them gracefully, smiling suggestively at Saitou. Kaoru fumed at their flirty smiles, how dare they do that in front of her and when it was so obvious that he already had a date?

Then, an elderly, plump man in a white tuxedo walked towards them. He was smiling, and as he reached them, he slapped Saitou friendly on the back.

"Hello, Saitou!" He exclaimed, "I almost thought you weren't coming!"

Saitou smiled back, "How could I miss your party celebrating the completion of your wonderful new mansion?"

The man chuckled and turned to look at Kaoru, "Who's the lovely young lady here?"

Kaoru tried her best to smile casually and extended her hand, "Kamiya Kaoru."

The man took her hand, his eyes twinkling mischievously, "Please to meet your acquaintance, Kamiya-san."

"Don't flirt with my date, Ito. You're too old for that," Saitou joked.

Otojiro Ito gave a shout of laughter, "Ah, but it isn't fair that you get all the lovely ladies."

Saitou smiled. Then, Ito turned Saitou to another side and asked in a low voice, "I thought that you are bringing Tokio along with you?"

"Didn't you read the news? Tokio and I are over."

"Well, what a shame. You two were so good together."

Saitou remained silent and his face was grim. Ito sensed that Saitou did not want to talk about it, and changed the subject. He waved to someone from afar and motioned to that person to come over.

"I'm going to introduce you two to one extremely talented and very capable young man who planned every detail of this house."

Saitou just smiled and Kaoru felt numb. Though Ito had turned Saitou away and asked him in low tones, she had heard every word of the conversation and it made her felt uncomfortable.

A young man appeared before them, and Ito said, "This is Souji Okita. The wonderful architect who made this all possible."

Saitou reached out to shake Okita's hand, "Hajime Saitou," he said. But Okita was not paying attention to Saitou, he was staring at Kaoru, very surprised and annoyed. In return, Kaoru was surprised to meet him again. Ito looked at them confusedly, "What's wrong Okita?"

Okita shook his head and smiled, "No, nothing is wrong. It's just that I've already met Kaoru."

Both Saitou and Ito looked taken aback by Okita's familiarity with Kaoru, by calling her by her first name.

Kaoru just nodded uneasily. Then, Okita put her into an even more awkward position by asking her to dance.

"Would you like to dance, Kaoru?" He asked, holding his hand out to her. His brown eyes were looking meaningfully into hers. Kaoru stared at his hand. What should she do? By accepting him, Saitou might be offended. But if she decline his offer, she would appear rude.

"Okay," she replied uncertainly.

Okita smiled happily and without a word to the other two men, he took Kaoru away. Saitou and Ito stared after them. Saitou's face showed unmistakable annoyance while Ito was just amused.

"Okita is a queer kid. I've worked with him in many projects and he has always given me the impression that he is completely immersed in his work. He has never shown any interest in women…"Ito murmured thoughtfully.

Saitou just continued to glare at Okita as he and Kaoru disappear among the crowd. Ito watched Saitou's face with a sly smile and patted Saitou on the shoulder, "She'll come back. Come, let me introduce you to some of my new friends."

Saitou nodded and followed Ito.

* * *

The dance floor was wide and spacious. And loud pop music was booming loudly. Disco lights were shining every where, and there were already many people grooving to the beat and having a great time.

Kaoru was relieved that dancing with Okita wouldn't include much interaction since it was pop music. But as if luck was not on her side, a slow song came on and Okita automatically put his arms around her waist. Kaoru just went along with it and closed her eyes, putting her arms around Okita's neck loosely. Throwing herself into the music, she let go of her nervousness.

That was until when Okita suddenly bent down his head, brushing his lips lightly across the base of her neck. Kaoru snapped back to full alertness and whispered, "Okita! What are you doing?"

She felt him smile against her neck, and realized that he was not embarrassed at all. He was very daring and he also enjoyed teasing her.

Then, he shifted his head and whispered softly into her ear, "I like it when you call me by my name, Kaoru."

Kaoru blushed and whispered back, "Would you please just put your head straight right up, people are looking!"

Okita chuckled lightly, "Let them look, I don't care."

"I care!" Kaoru protested.

With that, Okita lifted his head and looked Kaoru straight in the eye. "Are you and Hajime-san together?"

Kaoru shook her head, "No."

"Then, there is nothing wrong with us dancing here." Okita whispered. "Plus, I've notice that you are very tensed, it might do you good if you just forget everything else and dance."

Kaoru stared back into his dark eyes and blushed, and Okita smiled.

"Thank you." Kaoru said, smiling.

Okita just grinned and shifted her closer to him. Kaoru allowed herself to relax again and reminded herself that they were just dancing and nothing else.

* * *

Saitou walked around from the large group of people and breathed a sigh of relief. He had finally managed to shake off all those pestering ladies and rich businessmen. He looked around and decided that Kaoru had been absent for long enough. He began to walk towards the dance floor.

There he saw that young architect holding Kaoru close, whispering into her ear. And she was actually laughing at whatever he had just said. She was obviously enjoying his company. Saitou watched them amusedly, and felt some sort of anger stirring in him. Should he go over and interrupt them? No, he decided. He will just watch them in a corner where she could not see him and wait.

Luckily, she did not make him wait too long. After two more songs, they decided to take a break. And while doing so, a few men came along and engaged Okita in a conversation. Then, Kaoru said something to Okita and walked away.

Saitou got up from where he was watching them and followed Kaoru.

* * *

He found her outside in the large deserted balcony. She was leaning against the railing, looking up into the sky. Saitou watched her and thought that he had never seen anyone so beautiful. He could see her dress more clearly now, and notice how the purple fabric suited her so perfectly, the cutting of the dress flattering her slim figure in everyway. Saitou glanced at the slender neck that Okita was nuzzling at, than at her perfect firm breasts, her flat stomach and her tiny waist. His eyes traveled all the way down to her long and shapely legs with delicate ankles strapped by a pair of adorable white simple flats.

Her blue eyes were brighter than usual because of the moonlight reflecting off them, her hair had became a little messy and her intoxicating scent was driving him mad with desire. He walked towards her without a sound, and stood behind her.

He placed his hands on her waist and drew her against him. Kaoru spun around in surprise and found herself looking into roguish molten golden eyes.

"Saitou," she exclaimed.

"Hmm..?" Saitou murmured, descending his head to nuzzle at her neck, then, he began to kiss his way up and nibbled playfully at her ears. His hands moved up and cupped her breasts possessively.

Kaoru gasped at being touched by him again. It hit her like a huge rock; he still had such affect on her, such control over her. Just the slightest touch put her on fire. She turned around and moved her hands up his chest and Saitou's lips captured hers, rough and demanding. Kaoru parted her lips and he began to ravage her mouth with such overwhelming intensity and passion that Kaoru felt herself going weak.

Her knees gave out on her and Saitou caught her easily and pushed her against a wall, and continued to kiss her hungrily. Kaoru kissed him back with all the love and desire she felt for him and held onto him tight.

Then, suddenly, they heard someone opening one of the balcony doors and shifted more into the dark shadow of the corner.

Saitou lifted his lips reluctantly from hers and looked down at Kaoru. Her face was rosy from all the heated passion they shared and her lips were bruised and swollen from his kisses. Her silky hair was loose from the clips, and falling about her face. She was looking at him with large unsure eyes.

"My god, you are beautiful," he whispered, touching her cheek gently.

Then, a loud voice said, "There you are!"

It was Okita.

Saitou withdrew his hands and moved away from Kaoru. His face was calm and sharp again. Kaoru stared with shock and hurt at what was happening. He was looking like he was not affected at all! Like nothing had happened, and he moved away from her like he was ashamed to be found with her.

Kaoru felt tears gathering in her eyes.

What was she to him?

"Kaoru, I've been looking for you. What have you been doing out here with Hajime-san?" Okita asked, looking at them suspiciously.

Kaoru looked at Okita and didn't know what to say, "I…"

Saitou answered for her in a curt and cold voice, "We were talking about business, Souji-san."

Kaoru looked at Saitou with surprise. **_Business? They had been talking about business?_**

She understood that he couldn't really tell Okita what they were really doing out here, it was his actions and the tone of his voice that she did not like. It was like nothing had happened between them, and that he wouldn't want anyone to know what happened. It made her feel small, like a toy he played with when he wanted to. It made her feel sad, angry and stupid.

Then, there was a very tensed silence between the three of them. With Kaoru looking down at the floor, Okita staring suspiciously and Saitou being too calm beyond imaginable.

Finally, Kaoru looked up bravely and smiled, "I am really thirsty, so I'll go and get some punch."

She opened the glass balcony door and walked away without looking back.

* * *

She was so confused and angry at her own stupidity, that she did not notice that Saitou had come after her. She was having trouble getting hold of the large spoon to take the punch when suddenly a dark and tall figure pushed past her and took hold of it.

It was Saitou.

He then proceeded to pour punch into her glass and handed it to her graciously. "Here," he said.

Kaoru took the punch from him stiffly and moved away from him quickly. Saitou followed her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" he asked, turning her around to face him.

Kaoru bowed her head, "Nothing."

"Something is wrong with you, tell me," he persisted.

Kaoru remained silent.

"Tell me, Kaoru. Don't hide anything from me."

"Were we really talking about business?" Kaoru asked.

Saitou laughed, "You are upset because of that? You know very well that I can't tell him what we were doing."

"But why did you move away from me like you want nothing to do with me?"

"It was an instinctive reaction, Kaoru."

"So what if Okita knows what we are doing? It is not wrong."

"Oh, so it's Okita now, huh?"

Kaoru looked up and glared at him, "Don't change the topic, and answer my question."

Saitou sighed, "I agree that what we did is not wrong, but you don't understand. Please don't be upset just because of this."

Kaoru remained silent until she finally said, "Okay, I won't be upset. But I would like to go home now."

"Let's go say our goodbyes to Ito first."

Kaoru nodded and allowed Saitou to take her arm in his as they made their way through the people to Ito. They said their thanks and made their way out of the mansion.

* * *

All the way from Ito's house back to Kaoru's apartment, they did not speak a single word to each other. When Kaoru was getting out of the car, Saitou stopped her.

"I know that you are still upset with me, but don't let such a small thing spoil our evening together. Whatever I had done to upset you was not done intentionally, Kaoru." Saitou said.

Kaoru nodded, and felt the hard wall around her heart melting, she wanted so much to stay angry at him, to hate him and to not desire him. She wanted to stop herself from falling more hopelessly in love with him. But with him looking into her eyes like this, those golden eyes of his, she could not possibly stay angry at him. He was irresistible.

"Okay,"she whispered.

Saitou smiled and leaned down to kiss her lightly on the lips. Kaoru kissed him back gently.

Then, she got out of the car carefully.

"Sleep tight," he said, smiling at her.

Kaoru smiled back and watched him drove away.

She turned around and began to climb the stairs to her apartment.

When she reached the door and was about to stick the key into the lock, the door flung opened, revealing a very energetic and excited Misao, "Spill!" she squealed.

Kaoru laughed and told her very briefly about what happened at the party, but skipped the parts about the heated passion they share on the balcony or the insecurities brewing inside her. Though she had told Saitou that she won't be upset anymore, she could not help but feel sad and confused.

Then, she dismissed Misao's further questions with an excuse that she was tired and that she wanted to sleep. She knew that Misao was watching her as she walked into her room, but she ignored it and closed the door quietly behind her.

She took off her dress and removed her makeup, but inside she was numb. Then, she threw herself against the bed and stared into the ceiling, her eyes wide opened.

* * *

**A/N**: Hey, this chapter is done. I hope that you like the contents of this chapter, and I hope I did okay with the scenes of Saitou/Kaoru and Okita/Kaoru. Please tell me what you think and your thoughts and feelings when you read this chapter. If there is any mistakes, grammatical or sentence structuring, please tell me. I will really appreciate it if you all would let me know what you think!

**Tameka-tanuki-jouchan**: Hey, thank you for reviewing! Yeah, he'll need to stop his womanizing ways but that will be after several interesting events and twists! Haha! I hope that you like this chapter and do review again!

**Kaori-Angel**: Heyyyy, thank you for dropping a review again! I'm glad that you liked that last chapter! I didn't think of Okita showing up at the party but you gave me the idea! Thanks, this chapter could be out so fast because of you! I hope you like this chapter and tell me what you think! Please review again!

**FairyMage**: Thank you! Thank you, Thank you! For dropping such a long review telling me about my mistakes, I really appreciate it! Haha…hmm…Kaoru was anxious because she had not heard from Saitou for so long and he just suddenly appeared in front of her and she wanted to look good enough in front of him because she is falling in love with him. But than, just like you said, she could be happy and relieved as well! I hope that you like this chapter and do review again!

**Pixel-the-evil-fairy**: Hey, thank you for reviewing. I am glad that you find it funny. Thank you also for sharing me with your thoughts on Kao/Sai relationship, Saitou will learn a very important lesson in his life in this fic. I hope that you enjoy this chapter and do review again to share with me your thoughts!

**anime pixie**: Thank you for you review and I am happy that you liked the last chapter. And thank you for your compliments, it's very flattering! Yesss, I agree with you, I think they make a great couple too! I hope you like this chapter and please review again to tell me what you think!

**Jrz**: Dude, I hope you like this chapter…and tell muah what you think about the scenes in this chapter! Hahah…thank you for always reviewing and again…I hope you review again!


	11. A Turn Of Events

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

Hello my darling readers! Here goes another chapter

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 11**

Koishijiro picked up the ringing phone finally and said impatiently, "Hello."

It was Professor Suzukaze, "Good afternoon, Kamiya-san. I'm calling you about your daughter."

Koishijiro sat up straight in his chair, "What about her? I haven't hear from her for a while,"

"Lately she has not been paying attention during classes…"

"Is she failing any if the classes?" Koishijiro asked, cutting in before Suzukaze could finish his sentence.

"No," Suzukaze replied, "In fact, she always gets A's and is one of the top three students in all classes."

"Oh," Koishijiro said. "Has she been skipping any classes?"

"No, not yet."

"What do you mean by 'not yet'?"

"Lately, your daughter has been spending a lot of time with one of the artists in the Univeristy."

"An art student?"

"No, he is Amakusa Shougo, the university hires him as a consultant in the Art Department. He is a professional artist."

"Are they in a relationship?"

"That, I am not so sure."

* * *

**In the art studio… (Friday)**

Kaoru was painting on a canvas board while Shougo stands behind her, giving her comments and helping her. Kaoru brushed the colour carefully onto the face to enhance the feel of the shadows and turned around to Shougo.

"Is this okay?" She asked, smiling at him.

Shougo looked at the painting for a while before answering, "Yeah."

Kaoru smiled again and exclaimed, "Phew! I've finally got it this time round! This is the sixth time you made me draw it again!"

Shougo frowned.

Kaoru laughed and her eyes twinkled mischievously, "But you're the expert so I'll always listen to you!"

With that she got up and threw her arms around him and hugged him tight. Shougo blushed and was surprised by the sudden hug. Then, Kaoru released him, smiling gratefully at him now, "Thank you, Shougo. For everything."

Shougo smiled back at her awkwardly and Kaoru chuckled at Shougo's expression.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Shougo said.

And to both Shougo and Kaoru's surprise, it was Saitou who walked in. He was in his usual black suit and carrying a briefcase with a wolfish grin on his face.

"Hello," he said.

"Hello," Kaoru and Shougo said together. The both of then were both dismayed by Saitou's sudden appearance. For Shougo, it was because he knew that something was going on between Saitou and Kaoru. For Kaoru, it was because she was not ready to face him yet, she was still very confused and would like it better if he show up again after her emotions have settled.

Saitou, however did not seemed to notice the tensed atmosphere in the room. Either that or he didn't care. Casually, he walked towards them.

"How are you, Shougo?" he asked.

"Fine," Shougo replied.

Then, Saitou turned to Kaoru and bend to kiss her lightly on the cheek, "When will you be going to work?" I'll walk you there."

"Around five," Kaoru replied.

"Then we should get going right? I'll walk you there." Saitou said, taking her arm.

Shougo stiffened

"Erm…" Kaoru packed her bag quickly with the other two men watching her like a hawk.

Once she was ready, Saitou took her hand and led her out of the door.

"Bye, Shougo…" Saitou said.

"Bye, bye Shougo!" Kaoru called.

The door closed behind them, leaving Shougo staring at the door blankly, a storm brewing within him.

* * *

"Do you go to Shougo's everyday after your classes?" Saitou asked, while walking together with Kaoru to The Iwasaki's.

"Yes, if I have enough time, I always go."

Saitou nodded and asked, "What kind of art do you study?"

"I actually study medicine in the university, I just love art and Shougo agreed to help me."

Siatou nodded again and for the rest of the way to the Iwasaki's, they remained silent.

When they arrived in front of The Iwasaki's, Kaoru said, "Thank you for walking me here."

"You're welcome. I'll see you around, "he replied.

Kaoru nodded and up at him, Saitou just looked at her and walked down the street. She stared after him with a sad smile on her face.

That was what made Kaoru so confused. He could be so cold, mysterious and distant but yet so passionate when he kissed her. She knew nothing much about the man she was falling hopelessly in love with, except that he was a brilliant lawyer, rich and that he was worshipped by women wherever he went. She wanted to know so much more and she wanted the unrest feelings in her heart to settle down.

She was so immersed with her own thoughts that she didn't noticed that Tae was watching her.

"Ne, Kaoru?"

Kaoru spun around in surprised. "Tae! Sorry, I'll go change now!"

"Wait, was that Hajime-san just now?"

Kaoru nodded, "Yeah."

Tae smiled, "Okay, you better go change now."

Kaoru smiled back and rushed into The Iwasaki's and Tae walked in after her.

* * *

**The Next Day…**

"Shougo!" Kaoru exclaimed, opening the door to the art studio.

Shougo dropped his paint brush in surprise.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to startle you." Kaoru apologized, rushing to his side and picking up the paint brush.

Shougo waved it away and said, "didn't you have to work at The Iwasaki's ? I didn't know that you are coming today."

"One of the other waitresses changed shifts with me because she helped me out the other time, so I'll be working on Sunday instead of today!"

Shougo nodded, "Why are you so hyper today?"

"Because I don't need to work today and I can spend more time with you, painting! The art studio is not opened on Sundays…"

Shougo laughed, "You're just like a little girl…"

Kaoru laughed too, "I know. I can relax this way, it makes me feel like I have no troubles or worries at all. In fact, art makes me forget all my woes."

Shougo looked deep into her eyes at what she was saying and say earnestly, "If you are unhappy or if you need some help, you can always tell me. I'll help you."

Kaoru smiled gratefully, "Thank you."

"I notice that you've become skinnier these days, how are you coping now that you've move out from your father's?"

"How did you know about that?"

"Gossip among the professors…"

"Suzukaze?"

"Yeah."

"Damn him, he reports everything to my father, doesn't he? And he still wants to spread things around. What else did you hear?"

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yes,"

"He also mentions that your father wants you to carry on his position in his hospital."

"His position? Damn, I can never escape from his clutches, can I?"

"You can."

"I can? I don't want to become a doctor, I'll go crazy doing something that I don't enjoy…but yet I'm studying to become one. I don't think I have a choice."

"You do. It's right in front of you but you just fail to notice it, that's all."

"What is it?"

"You can become an artist."

Kaoru laughed, "Me? I've just started learning from you. I'm barely coping with my job, art and class work…I can't possibly become an artist."

"I'll be opening an art gallery soon, how would you like to be my partner?"

"Your partner?"

Shougo nodded, "You can put some of your paintings in the art gallery, it'll be introducing you to the public like a professional."

"But I am an amateur!"

"You are, but your works aren't. It's up to the standards of being displayed."

"But…"

"Believe me Kaoru, I know about these things."

Kaoru nodded weakly, "Are you sure Shougo? I'm afraid that I might pull you down or embarrass you…what if people don't like my paintings?"

Shougo laughed, "Then, I pity them because they are obviously missing out on something great. Don't worry Kaoru."

Kaoru smiled gratefully, "I thank you for trying to help me but I am still unsure, you see, I'm new at making my own decisions and I'm afraid to do something different."

Shougo reached out to tuck a few loose strands of hair behind her hair tenderly and smiled gently, "I understand that you are confused now. Don't worry, you don't have to make up your mind about this now. You can tell me when you've made your decision. Just want to let you know that I'm always here for you."

Tears gathered in Kaoru's eyes upon hearing Shougo's kind and touching words then, she threw her arms around him and hugged him tight, "Thank you…thank you so much…"

* * *

**On Saturday**

Misao put the finishing touches to her make-up before walking out of her room.

Kaoru was studying at the dining table.

"Kaoru," Misao said, "how do I look?"

Kaoru looked up from her book and at Misao, a smile creeping on her lips, "Gorgeous."

Misao was wearing a pretty green sundress. She looked so cute and refreshing. Just the sight of her would brighten up anyone's gloomy day.

"Do you think I look nice enough for Seta-san to fall in love with me?"

Kaoru laughed, "Yes, Misao. But love don't come so easily…"

"But it seemed to have come easily for you. You love Saitou and he seems to like you too."

Kaoru shrugged uneasily, "Note that you've said: 'he seems to like you too'. He doesn't like me as much I like him, we don't even have to talk about him loving me…"

Misao looked confused, "If he doesn't love you, why are you still wasting your time on him? I still don't trust him."

"It's not so easy, Misao. It isn't so easy to walk away from someone you are crazy about…"

Misao looked at Kaoru sadly, "Kaoru…I think you should-"

Kaoru cut her off, "Misao-chan, you'll be late for Seta-san if you continue to talk to me. We can talk when you come back."

"But…"

"Go, Misao. I'm fine, just go ahead and have fun."

Misao picked up her bag and opened the door, she smiled wearily at Kaoru, "Here I go…"

Kaoru smiled reassuringly and said, "Don't worry, just be safe."

And as the door closed behind Misao, Kaoru slumped back in her chair and sighed.

* * *

Okita looked at the screen on his cellular phone. It was Enishi, calling him. He pressed a button, "Hello?"

"Hey," Enishi's friendly voice boomed into his ears.

Okita laughed, "Why are you so happy today?"

Enishi laughed too, "How about let's meet up at our favourite restaurant for dinner tonight?"

"Our favourite restaurant?"

"The Iwasaki's."

"Oh! What's the occasion?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing. Just want to meet up with up and catch up on things, we haven't go out just to relax for a while."

"But from your voice, I don't think that's it, Enishi. There is something else on your sleeves, I can almost 'see' it from your voice."

Enishi laughed again, "We'll see, we'll see…just come to The Iwasaki's okay? You'll never know if you don't come."

Okita laughingly agreed and disconnected the call after they had said their goodbyes. **_What is Enishi up to now?_**

* * *

****

Kaoru glanced at the clock tiredly, it was only 7.15pm. She still had so much to do. Suddenly, Tae tapped her on her back and said lowly, "Your hair is getting messy, go tie it again."

Kaoru nodded and headed towards the waitress' changing room. She looked into the mirror and indeed her hair was in quite a mess. Strands of raven hair had come out of her bun and she looked tired and worn-out. She shook her head violently in attempt to wake herself up, she can't go on looking like this or else she would give the customers a bad impression.

She combed her hair and tied it high up into a tight, elegant bun. Then, she applied some concealer to hide her dark eye circles and some lip gloss. She plastered a smile on her lips and sighed, she looked like an idiot.

Sighing again, she left the changing room to go to work again.

* * *

Enishi looked about him but he could not see Kaoru anywhere. He was so sure that she works on Saturday nights. Okita had not arrived yet…if Kaoru is not here, then there was no point of meeting Okita here.

Then, he saw her coming out from a door. She was smiling and her blue eyes were sparkling. Even in uniform, she took his breath away. He didn't not know why he was so attracted to her, it was like she had this special aura about her that called to him.

"What are you smiling about?"

Enishi looked up and saw Okita standing beside him, smiling amusedly at him.

Enishi shook his head and laughed, "Nothing. You're finally here...let's order."

Okita nodded and sat down, now looking at Enishi confusedly.

* * *

For a moment while the waitress was taking down their orders, Okita's gaze shifted to Kaoru.

"Enchanting, isn't she?"

Okita almost jumped at being caught looking atKaoru and was surprised to find out that it was Enishi who wasspeaking. He, too was looking at Kaoru, and there was something in Enishi's eyes that made him felt uncomfortable. **_Why is he looking at Kaoru that way?_**

"She's my fiancé…" Enishi added, still looking at Kaoru dreamily.

Okita's heart nearly jumped out of his chest, "Your_ fiancé?_"

Enishi nodded and turned back to look at Okita, "Remember the girl I told you about? The one that isn't in love with me yet?"

Okita nodded slowly, "Yeah."

"That's the girl, right there." Enishi replied, pointing at Kaoru.

Okita blinked, trying very hard to make sure that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him while he followed where Enishi was pointing at.

"Which one?" he asked. He had to make sure.

Enishi laughed, "I can introduce you to her if you want to. I'm still friends with her even though we are not lovers."

Okita was about to protest but he was too late, Enishi was already waving to Kaoru.

Then, he thought he saw Kaoru frowned before walking over to their table.

"How may I help you?" she asked, smiling. Her voice all business and polite.

Enishi laughed, "Can't a friend ask you to come over so that I can say 'hi'?"

Kaoru smiled wider and said, "Okay. You've said 'hi'. Now I need to get back to work."

Enishi laughed again and caught her wrist before she could get away, "Now, now. Don't disappear so fast, I have someone that I would like to introduce you to,"

Kaoru turned to look at where Enishi was gesturing and her eyes met two familiar hazel ones, staring back at her. She cursed herself inside her mind. Why does everyone knows _everyone_?

"Souji-san," she managed to say.

"Kaoru," Okita replied, nodding his head.

Enishi stared at them, "You two know each other?"

Okita and Koaru stared at each other, not knowing what to say.

"We've met through friends," Kaoru said uncertainly.

"Yeah," Okita said.

Enishi laughed, and was about to ay something more when Kaoru cut him off again.

"I've got to get back to work."

She left quickly, walking as fast as her legs could carry her.

* * *

_**Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!**_

Kaoru could not believed that it was happening! Okita was out there with Enishi, and she wondered what Enishi had told him…that she was his fiancé? Or else Okita would never look at her with that look in his eyes. With such surprise, it was almost like he was accusing her of something…

_**It cannot be!**_

She had already told Enishi that the engagement was off, he wouldn't tell tales, would he?

She hoped not, because if he did, she'll make sure that he'll suffer the consequences.

* * *

Misao could not help it but she just could not stop herself from staring at Soujiro. She suspected that the handsome young man handling the wheels beside her might be even more alluring and beautiful than her.

He had such kind, blue eyes and soft black curling hair that curled about his neck gracefully. He was so nice to her, always being such a gentleman. He held the door opened for her whenever they went, pulled her chair for her to sit down at the restaurant and listened to whatever she had to say. He was also always smiling so warmly, and also not aware of how much his smiles were affecting her.

They laughed, joked and had lots of fun. So much so that Misao was sorry that the evening was over when Soujiro brought her home late at night.

"I had fun tonight. Thank you." Misao said, smiling happily at Soujiro.

Soujiro nodded in agreement, "Yeah, I had fun too. You make everything seemed like fun."

Misao blushed, "Eh?"

Soujiro laughed and bent to kiss her lightly on the cheek, "Maybe we should go out again. A movie, perhaps?"

"Really?"

"Really."

Misao's smiled widened and she asked, "When?"

"Friday night, next week?"

Misao nodded eagerly, "Okay."

Then, she got out of the car and watched Soujiro drove away.

Her mind was dizzy, she could almost still feel Soujiro's lips being pressed onto her cheek…

* * *

**11.30pm**

Kaoru sighed and changed into her own clothes, work was finally over. She had tried her best to avoid the table that Okita and Enishi was sitting at and she was still angry at how Enishi had behaved. Like some stupid young boy. She was sure for now that he was there to annoy her. Always looking at her with a stupid smile on his face. She was tensed all through out, she couldn't relax and now she was thinking of beating him up one day for making her this nervous today.

She sighed again, putting on her brown trench coat over her simple red dress; telling herself that she should just forget about it and have a good night's sleep.

But obviously that wasn't what was planned for her tonight.

As Kaoru stepped out of the restaurant, onto the empty streets, she saw a slim figure in front of her, leaning against a lamp post.

Souji Okita…

* * *

**A/N**: Hey there, this chapter is FINALLY finished! My whole body is aching from a challenging and dangerously mountain climb. Wow, I don't know how many bruises I have on my body. Not to mention the cuts. I'm just very glad that I survive without killing myself. Half of the time I didn't know what I was doing, I just felt like I was Tarzan or Spiderman.

Okies, people. Please review and tell me what you all think! Let me know how I am doing…feedback is always appreciated!

**anime pixie **: yeah, hahaah! Thank you for your review, I'm glad that you liked that last chapter, I hope you like this one. There is not much of SaitouKaoru here, but I still hope that you'll enjoy it. More of their moments will be in later chapters!

**Tameka-tanuki-jouchan**:OooHHH…I'm happy that you like those moments between Kaoru and Saitou, I was afraid that I didn't do good with that one. Thank you! I hope you like this chapter, let me know!

**YaymeQ**: Thank you for saying that it is a unique fic and thanking for stopping by and reviewing. Yes, you are right, it's okay to tell me about my mistakes. It's not rude at all! I hope you like this chapter!

**Kaori-Angel**:Heheheh, yes you helped! Yeay and thanks! Hmmm…what will Kaoru do when she find out that they are brothers? That will be at a much later chapter, I'm still not so sure. I do hope you enjoy this chapter, let me know what you think!

**FairyMage**: Hey there! Thank you for taking time out to review my last chapter even though you are busy. Thank you! I'm glad that you like the last chapter…it's cute? Hahahah! I hope you like this chapter!

**Pixel-the-evil-fairy**:it's okay, thank you for your review…..and here is the update! I do hope you like this chapter and please do review again!

**Jrz**: hello dear, how are ya feeling? Thank you for reviewing and I hope you like this chapter dude…..Hehehehh!

**Reviews are goooood.**


	12. Hanging

Disclaimer: I do not and never will own Rurouni Kenshin.

A/N: Yes, I'm back. Now that I have more time, I am here to continue and finish this story. Of course, to do so, I'll need to support of my darling readers. Please do review to tell me what you think. And thank you so much to those who reviewed to tell me how much you like this story, encouraging me to continue. Believe me, it means a lot to me. Actually, I have been working on this chapter for a while already, it's because of the long disconnection with this story which make the progression of this chapter so slow. I find myself trying to get into the character's head again and here is the chapter…finally!

* * *

**Healing by KatsunoCZ**

**Chapter 12**

"Okita…" Kaoru said.

Okita didn't reply but stared deeply into her eyes. He walked towards her, a frown forming on his face.

"You never told me that Enishi is your fiancé," he said.

"Because he is not!" Kaoru exclaimed, "What did he tell you?"

"He said that you're his fiancé but you're not in love with him…"

"There! You have it, I'm not in love with him. So there is no way that I'm his fiancé. It is my father's idea. Enishi and I are just friends. Besides, I'm in love with someone else."

Okita looked at her, surprised, "Who are you in love with?"

Kaoru shrugged, "No one you know."

But Okita knew, he knew exactly who it was. He had seen the way she looked at Saitou, but he wouldn't press her. He was not ready to hear that from her yet.

"Come on, let me walk you home…" he said, taking her hand.

Kaoru did not move. "Why are you waiting out here for me in the first place?"

"I'm just very surprised by Enishi telling me that you are his fiancé, and let me tell you that it is not a very nice shock. Especially when I don't want you to be engage to anyone."

Kaoru just nodded, she could read deeper in what Okita had just said but she just pretended that she didn't know.

They walked in silence all the way to the building of apartment she was living at. Kaoru was deep in thought. It was funny how the man she badly wanted didn't want her as bad as she did and the man she didn't want was trying to hold onto her no matter what. Then, she glanced at Okita, she didn't know what to make out of him. He was there for her when she was feeling uneasy during the extravagant party that Saitou brought her to, and he seemed to care enough for her to worry about her safety.

Upon reaching the apartment Okita offered to walk her up again but Kaoru declined.

"Thank you, Okita, but I'll be fine. Thank you for walking me home." Kaoru said, smiling softly.

Okita saw her soft smile and nodded, "Good night, Kaoru."

Kaoru smiled again and begun walking up the stairs, but she could feel Okita's gaze on her. Why did her life become so dramatic once she came back to Japan?

* * *

When Kaoru entered the apartment that she shared with Misao, she knew that Misao was asleep as it was silent and all the lights were switched off. She guessed that she will have to pry out all the juicy details about her date with Soujiro tomorrow; Kaoru smiled at the thought of that. She was happy for Misao; her own relationship with Saitou wasn't what she would call normal. It had been days since that night at the party and still he did not call. It had been too long, if he had wanted to call, he would have done so a long time ago. Could it be that he really didn't want her anymore?

Kaoru hated to feel this way, she hated the way she waited on his calls and yet she cannot bring herself to call him first. She would not like to appear like a desperate woman, she knew that he had enough of that. As much as she wanted to hear his voice, she wouldn't let go of her pride just to call him.

Why was she so weak? It was like she was no longer in control of her own life, her emotions were in a whirlwind and it was making her really frustrated and confused. She wanted to become stronger, no longer did she want to dwell on her feelings for Saitou or the fact that he did not call. Kaoru gave out a determined sigh and decided fiercely that she would forget how much she loved his kisses and how safe and secure she felt his arms.

But it didn't turn out as nicely as she planned, no matter how determined she was, because that night, Kaoru did not sleep at all.

* * *

It was Monday morning and Saitou was sitting calmly at his desk with a mug of steaming coffee and a parchment in his hand. Only that he wasn't reading the parchment. He was thinking of the child-like woman that he met not so long ago; Kaoru.

Saitou did not understand his actions. Before, when he was interested in a woman, he would just pursue her with all the charismatic charms he had and once he was bored, he would drop her, like he always do. But he did not understand why this courtship with Kaoru lasted for so long; longer than he liked.

He found himself strongly attracted to her and she can make him hot with just one touch and yet he knew so little about her. Now that he think of it, their relationship, starting from when they first met, wasn't so 'normal'. He didn't feel as in control as he usually did. Although he always teases Shougo about Kaoru, the truth was that he wasn't so comfortable with Kaoru spending so much time with his best friend.

Kaoru was different, she was so innocent and sometimes even naïve to the point where she was ridiculously cute. She obviously didn't understand man like him, and definitely wasn't used to the games that he usually play. He could also see that she was extremely kind with her warm and gentle smiles, Kaoru possessed an unaffected warmth that he had never seen before. Shougo had pleaded on Kaoru's behalf, telling Saitou to let her go, and that he had no right to diminish the beautiful spirit of Kaoru just for his own games. Saitou had ignored him, but what Shougo had said did bother him. It was true, he had no right whatsoever to destroy that wonderful warmth of hers and that definitely she deserved someone better other than him.

* * *

Kaoru practically ran out of the lecture theatre and sped all the way to Shougo's art studio without stopping once. She had made her decision; she was going to work on the paintings which were to be displayed with Shougo's in the new art gallery he was going to opened. It was going to be her debut as an artist, and if people like her works, there was going to be a possibility that she could drop Medicine and work full time as an artist.

Shougo hugged her happily when he heard the news, "So, do you have any idea what kind of paintings you are going to work on?"

Kaoru thought about the numerous sketches that she had made of Saitou and decided that some finished paintings of him should be displayed. "Of course, I will paint other things of course. Like beautiful sceneries of nature, the crowded buildings in this city…or even this University itself!"

Shougo nodded approvingly, "Yes, I like your portraits of Saitou. They are wonderful and you did a great job with the colouring. We shall work on your other paintings from now on."

Kaoru smiled at him, "Oh, thank you so much for giving me this opportunity. I owe you so much. Thank you, Shougo."

Shougo smiled back at her. "Don't worry about it. At least now you know what you really want with your life. Maybe you should let your father know about it, at least he won't pressure you anymore about being a doctor if he knows."

Kaoru eyes darkened and she shook her head sadly, "Do you remember that last time when I fainted in the park and Saitou rescued me?"

"Yes," Shougo said.

Then, Kaoru told him about why she was in the park in the first place, she also told him about how her father had arranged her engagement with Yukishiro Enishi. "Enishi and I talked about the arranged engagement and I thought that I was clear with the fact that there was no way I'm going along with my father's plan. But I think he still doesn't get it, and my father definitely isn't changing his mind."

Shougo's eyes widened at the mention of Enishi's name, "The man you are engaged to, his name is Yukishiro Enishi?"

"Yes," Kaoru replied, "But you see, I'm not that worried because they can't force me to marry anyone. Which is why I think it is better if my father did not know of my new decision to take on Art seriously, he will be furious and he can be very cruel when he's angry."

Shougo nodded distractedly, he could not believe it, Kaoru was engaged to Saitou's step-brother? Everything was more complicated than he think, but he wasn't going to tell Kaoru about it. He just kept silent as Kaoru rambled on about her frustrations. They really should just concentrate on their paintings now.

* * *

That night, work at The Iwasaki's went smoothly without a hitch. There wasn't any crazy drunken man about or Enishi or Okita. So Kaoru was left to do her work in peace. But that night, she was overcame by a different kind of sadness, everything had happened so fast in her life that she didn't realized how much she missed America and Sano and Yahiko. She missed their harmless jokes and the times where they tried so hard to cheer her up whenever she was having one of her bad hair days.

So straight after work, she walked to the Cyber Cafe near bye to use the Internet and just as she expected, there were several e-mails from both Sano and Yahiko berating her for not contacting them and lots of threats if she does not reply their e-mails. Kaoru laughed herself silly at the content of their e-mails and it was the one of the rarest times where she felt the most happy and relaxed.

After she had replied their e-mails and apologized profusely for the lateness, she walked back to her apartment, surprised to find Misao still awake and sitting on one of the sofas.

"Where were you?" Misao asked, "I was waiting for you to come home!"

Kaoru laughed, "I went to the Cyber Café near The Iwasaki's, and why are you waiting for me?"

Misao sighed and punched out at one of the pillows, "I am feeling blue and frustrated and I badly need someone to talk to."

"What's wrong?" Kaoru asked, her voice softening. "Is it something about Soujiro? Was he unkind to you?"

"No, no!" Misao said, "Nothing of that sort. We had a great time together last night, and he was very nice to me, very sweet. And…I find myself liking him very much."

"Then what are you so frustrated about?"

"He doesn't livein Japan!He's going back to America soon, and we won't be seeing each other anymore…and you know what that means, this isn't going to work out for us."

Kaoru sat down beside Misao and touched her arm reassuringly, "How can you say that after all the great times you've had with him? Besides, he seems to like you a lot, I'm sure that you guys can work something out."

Misao shook her head, "Yeah, he seems to like me a lot and we're going to watch a movie this Friday. But sooner or later, he is still going to leave, right? And once people don't see each other anymore, the feelings will slowly fade away, right? Besides, I'm not even sure he likes me as much as I like him."

Kaoru hugged Misao, "Don't worry so much Misao. Why don't you just enjoy the time you have with him now. You've started this with him, there's no way you can just back out of it when you want to. And you really like him a lot, don't you?"

Misao nodded, "No, Kaoru, I'm just afraid. I don't want it to be this way, I don't want him to leave. Why can't he be living in Tokyo?"

Kaoru kept quiet and just continued to hug Misao, trying to give her the most comfort she could offer. She understood how Misao was feeling right now but she didn't what she can say to make her feel better. She just hoped that Soujiro was the man she expected him to be.

* * *

The next day, when Kaoru ride up her bicycle to the university, she saw a familiar figure standing at the gate. It was Okita…again. Kaoru smiled briefly at him and watched him walked over to her purposefully, what did he want now?

"Good morning, Kaoru." Okita said, smiling at her warmly.

"Good morning," Kaoru said, "what are you doing here?"

"I was waiting for you."

"Why?"

"Because I haven't seen you for a long time and so here I am."

Kaoru laughed, "Okita, we just saw each other a day ago!"

Okita laughed too, "I know, but it seems like forever." Then, he looked meaningfully into her eyes and grabbed her hand.

Kaoru was beginning to feel uncomfortable, "Okita, I…"

"Hmmm?"

Kaoru pulled her hand away and looked firmly into his eyes, "Okita, I don't understand why you are here, or why you are behaving so oddly. And it is making me feel very uncomfortable."

Okita smiled easily and said, "I'm here because I like you, Kaoru. And I am behaving so oddly because I want to be closer to you. Isn't it very clear what my intentions are?"

Kaoru shook her head, "No, I told you before that I am in love with someone else. I'm sure I made it clear enough that I don't want any of this that you are suggesting."

"It's Saitou, isn't it?" Okita asked, and before Kaoru could reply, he continued, "You don't have to answer me. I know. But let me warn you, Kaoru, he isn't the man for you. He's unstable."

"I know!" Kaoru said, her eyes looking at him defiantly, "Lots of people told me about him and all about his women and all the other things he had done. So you don't have to warn me anymore, Okita."

"Then why are you still so in love with him when you know very well that he can't give you the happiness you crave?"

"I do not know myself, Okita," Kaoru replied, then her voice softened and she smiled weakly at him, "I know that you care about me, Okita. And I care about you too, but all I can offer you now is my friendship, nothing else. I'm sorry."

Okita looked at her silently and a grim smile twisted on his lips.

"Okita, please understand." Kaoru said, "I wouldn't want anything to come between our friendship. I want you as a friend, Okita."

"Only as a friend?" Okita asked, his eyes looking searchingly into hers.

Kaoru looked away and nodded, "I'm sorry."

Okita nodded and touched her hand again, "I understand, Kaoru. I think I will leave now."

Then, Okita left and walked away from her, leaving her to stare after him sadly. When he was finally out of sight, Kaoru groaned as she realized that she was late for class…again.

**_Darn._**

* * *

That night, Okita showed up at The Iwasaki's again and Kaoru didn't know how to face him when she approached his table. Why did he come? Was he trying to make it harder for her?

When she was finally standing in front of his table, he smiled at her warmly and Kaoru smiled back gratefully.

"Let's be friends now, Kaoru," he said, "And when you finally realized that I'm the one for you, I'll be here."

"Okita…"

Okita held his hand up to stop her from saying more, then, he smiled at her again, "Can I get the restaurant's special cookies and green tea?"

Kaoru nodded and smiled back at him, then she walked hurriedly away. At least Okita understood that she didn't want anything but friendship from him now. She thought him to be very considerate.

And when Kaoru finally got home that night, she was exhausted. She had to work like this or else she couldn't support herself. She hardly ever shops for anything else but groceries and she seldom eat out. Besides, she was too busy for that. Even she noticed that she was losing weight.

Misao was still awake and the moment Kaoru opened the front door, the girl bounced out from her room announcing that a Hajime Saitou had called her earlier on.

"I told him that you weren't at home and so he said that he will call again when you get home. But he hasn't call yet. I wonder, how does he know when you are going to get home?"

"I wonder too…" Kaoru said, she did not know how to respond to all this. She was so tired and Saitou had finally called. Wasn't she supposed to feel happy? But instead, she felt even more exhausted than ever.

Then, the phone rang at this exact moment and Misao smiled mischievously at Kaoru.

"I suppose that is your Saitou." Then, she went back to her own room and closed the door behind her.

Kaoru picked up the receiver and indeed, it was Saitou.

"How are you?" he asked.

"I'm fine,"Kaoru replied, "How about you?"

This conversation reminded Kaoru so much of the last time he had called her that she almost laughed.

"I'm sorry that I didn't call earlier, I was busy."

"It's all right," Kaoru said, but she knew that it was just an excuse. He could always make time if he wanted to.

"I was wondering if you would like to go to another party with me again."

Kaoru thought about it before answering, "What kind of party?"

"A beach party," he said, "and maybe we can spend a few days there at the house I have there."

Kaoru's eyes widened. Beach party and spending time with Saitou at a house he had there? Kaoru swallowed the lump in her throat.

"So what do you think?" Saitou asked.

"Okay," she said unsteadily, "when is this?"

"This Friday, the party is held by one of my business associates again. But it'll be fun, we can even go sailing in my boat."

"Okay," Kaoru said again, she did not know what to say anymore.

Saitou laughed into the phone, "Don't worry, my friends won't bite and neither do I."

Kaoru laughed uncomfortably with him and thought about what he had just said. She was sure that his friends don't 'bite' but she wasn't so sure about him not biting her.

"So I'll pick you up in the afternoon on Friday, the party's at night. Bring along some clothes with you."

"Okay, but I can only spend one night there. I still have to work during the weekends, Saitou. I'll switch shifts with another waitress on Friday."

Saitou agreed and they said their good nights and Kaoru put down the phone with a heavy heart. She knew very well what she was getting herself into. And she knew what Saitou was suggesting with that spending a night at his beach house. She could have refused him, make up some excuse and tell him that she couldn't go, but she didn't. Instead, she threw herself right into the raging fire, exposing herself to a heart ache that might come. But neither did she regret her doing because she was too in love with the man to care.

Misao came out of her room and interrupted Kaoru's thoughts.

"What did he want?" she asked savagely.

Kaoru laughed at the expression on Misao's face, "Don't be so angry, Misao. He just asked me out, let's all."

Misao fumed, "And that is why I am angry! When he's happy, he calls you and asks you out. Then, he leaves you hanging and then what? You know very well that he is bad news. What does he want this time round? Another party?"

Kaoru nodded, "Yes, and maybe spending a night at his beach house near where the party is held."

"What!"

"Yes, yes Misao. I know what you are thinking but I am still going anyway."

Misao looked at the determined face of Kaoru's and decided that she couldn't change Kaoru's mind no matter what.

"Okay," Misao said, "I know that I can't stop you. But promise this: be careful. That man is too jaded for you."

Kaoru nodded happily and hugged Misao, "I promise that I'll be careful."

* * *

A/N: More Saitou and Kaoru coming up soon. Do review and let me know what you think. 


	13. Whirlwinds

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

* * *

**Chapter 13: Whirlwinds**

It was Wednesday afternoon and Kaoru was sitting at the front counter of The Iwasaki's. Oddly, this was one of the times where there were very few customers and she was broadly free. Kaoru stared into space and her thoughts drifted to that of her own life. It seemed to her that everything was a mess. She didn't even know if the decisions that she made without her father behind her back are right or wrong. When he helped her chose the path of medicine after she graduated from highschool, she really didn't know what she was doing. At that time, she kept asking herself, "Is this what I really want?" and until now, she still did not have an answer. She had wanted to please her father, she had wanted to be a good daughter but now, she knew that maybe her father had gone too far in making her decisions. Yet, she doubted if the decisions that she made herself are better than her father's.

Time had past so fast and soon it will be Friday. Kaoru dreaded that day and yet she was excited at the same time. She realized that she had never felt truly happy ever since she came back to Japan, she wondered, would she be much happier if she had listened to her father and given Enishi a chance? After all, she seemed very eager to be with her, unlike the cold indifference of Saitou's. It was true that Saitou had kissed her passionately and his eyes burn with desire whenever he looked at her. But Kaoru couldn't help but feel that Saitou was treating her like the many other women he had, her feelings for him were strong and she knew that she was the only one who was feeling that way. Maybe she should ask Shougo tomorrow about Saitou's past, there must be a reason why Saitou was like that.

* * *

"Shougo?" Kaoru said, looking up from the painting she was working on. It was Thursday and they were busy with the paintings that are going to be displayed in the art gallery.

"Hmm?" Shougo grunted, his paint brush moving over the big piece of paper furiously.

"How long have you known Saitou?" Kaoru asked.

Shougo put down his paint brush and turned to look at her. "Why?"

"Well, we've dated and I've known him for quite a while but I can't help it but feel that I don't know him at all."

Shougo chuckled, "I understand what you mean. Saitou is not a very easy person to get close too. But you shouldn't blame him, Kaoru. There are reasons why he is like that."

Kaoru's eyes widened, "Why? What happened?"

"I've known Saitou since we were eight but we only became close friends later. Even though I'm one of his close friends, he still keeps me at a slight distance. There is a part of him that he will not share with others."

Kaoru nodded at Shougo, urging him to go on.

"Saitou's mother is from a very wealthy family while his father isn't so well off. His mother's parents were strongly against their marriage but they got married still. His father was struggling with his own shop and when Saitou was ten, his father died in a car accident and his mother saw no reason to stay anymore. She left, leaving the young Saitou with his grandparents and Saitou was heart broken, he loved his mother very much, despite her many faults."

"What was Saitou like when he is young?" Kaoru asked, she wanted to know more of the powerful, enigmatic man who owned her heart but didn't seem to want it.

Shougo smiled sadly, "He was different then. He still has those amazing amber eyes but they were brighter and warmer. He has always been quiet but now he has turn cynical and hard. For months, he would watch out the window, waiting for her to come back. He couldn't believe that his mother isn't coming back to him, he was so stubborn and he wouldn't give up."

Kaoru's heart ached at hearing about Saitou's past. Images of the younger, smaller Saitou formed in her mind and she could almost feel how heartbroken he must have felt then.

"What happened later? Did she come back?" Kaoru asked.

Shougo shook his head bitterly, "No, she never came back. She went back to her lavish lifestyle and remarried later, it was like she never had a son named Hajime. Saitou went after her when he was twelve but he wouldn't tell me what happened. It was the last blow on him and he turned colder and more distant than ever."

Kaoru looked down at her feet, she didn't know what to say. So that was why Saitou was so cold and unfeeling sometimes. He had learnt at a young age that a woman could never be entrusted with his heart. Kaoru simultaneously wanted to strangle Saitou's mother and to lavish Saitou with her own love whether he want it or not.

"I know that you're in love with him," Shougo said. "And I am not going to stop you." He smiled at Kaoru.

Kaoru finally brought herself to look up at Shougo and confessed, "I'm going with him to a beach party tomorrow."

Shougo sighed and nodded. "Just be careful, Kaoru. Think clearly. Saitou has the ability to bewitch people."

Kaoru laughed weakly at Shougo's attempted humor and nodded back at him. It was true, Saitou did have the ability to bewitch people; being with him was like being in a dream.

"Why do you everyone call him Saitou even though Hajime is his first name?" Kaoru asked.

Shougo smiled teasingly at her. "Then why do you call him Saitou?"

Kaoru thought about it and replied, "Well, everyone calls him Saitou and so I call him Saitou too. Besides, calling him Hajime would just sound odd."

"Yes, that is our reason to call him Saitou as well." Shougo said, "He never said anything about it, but calling him Hajime will just confuse things. I guess that he got used to it already."

Kaoru laughed and smiled her brightest smile at Shougo. "I don't know why, but just hearing about him makes my heart beat so much faster."

"You love him more after I told you about his misfortunes, right?" asked Shougo, "Well, it's my fault, then."

"Yes!" Kaoru exclaimed, blushing furiously, "I can't believe that I'm telling you this, Shougo!"

Shougo smiled at her. "Don't worry about it. We're friends, right?"

Kaoru nodded distractedly, a smile still on her lips. She was not really listening to Shougo anymore. Now, she just couldn't wait to see Saitou.

* * *

On Friday, Kaoru got back earlier from the Art Studio to get ready for her trip with Saitou. She took a long shower and did all the primping she could and pack a change of clothes into a bag. Misao was watching her all the while with a worried look on her face.

When Kaoru was finally ready, she went to stand by the window, watching out for Saitou's car. Misao sighed and so Kaoru went to her, put a hand on Misao's arm and smiled reassuringly at her. Then, Kaoru went to stand next to the window again. She was more excited than she thought she would be. After she had discovered so much about Saitou's past from Shougo, she couldn't stop thinking. She had decided that she was going to be herself around him and to get him to open up to her.

And when she saw his black Mercedes Benz coming down the street, she gave Misao a quick good bye hug and rushed downstairs. Kaoru laughed at herself while she flew down the stairs because she knew that she wasn't being herself and was behaving ridiculously.

She landed on the end of the stairs just as Saitou stopped his car right in front of her. He raised an eyebrow at her, an amused smirk playing on his lips which made Kaoru wonder what she must had looked like after that adrenaline-charged run down the stairs.

Saitou got out from his car and Kaoru widened her eyes. He wasn't wearing his trademark black or dark blue clothes. Instead, he had donned on a shirt with neat brown colour pinstripes and long khaki pants. He looked so different and so handsome that Kaoru's heart went racing like mad again.

Saitou raised an eyebrow at her again and said teasingly, "Mesmerized?"

Kaoru just laughed and got into the passenger's seat without saying another word. She heard Saitou's deep chuckle before getting into the car himself.

He glanced at her and commented, "The yellow dress fits you perfectly."

Kaoru looked down at her yellow sundress and burst out laughing. "Don't ever let anyone tell you that you have a way with flattery, because you don't."

"Is that right?" he mocked, his eyes challenging. "In that case, I'll tell you _exactly_ what I think: I think that you're exquisitely lovely, and that you have the fascinating ability to look like an extremely sexy, sophisticatedly young woman and utterly angelic girl at one and the same time. And you took my breath away the moment I saw you smiling at me in that dress of yours at the bottom of the stairs."

Kaoru's face blushed a deep red and she turn away to avoid Saitou's burning eyes. She was embarrassed and also very happy to hear what Saitou had said; only that from the tone of voice he just used, Kaoru was now even more sure of what Saitou wanted from her tonight.

Saitou chuckled again at Kaoru's reaction and pressed a kiss on her forehead before starting the car engine. He was beginning to think that this trip might turn out to be more than he bargained for.

* * *

By the time they reached the seaside, the sun was already setting; splashing a beautiful shock of red and orange across the sky. It was a magnificent sight and Kaoru loved it. It was so nice to ride in the car with Saitou even though they didn't talk much. What they shared was the peaceful silence and the playful glances they gave to each other time to time. Kaoru knew that what she should be doing was to worry about her future and her heart but she couldn't let her woes spoil a perfect time like this. It had been a long time since she had a break and she wanted to enjoy herself.

"We're here," Saitou said, interrupting Kaoru in her thoughts. Kaoru turned her head to look in front of her and saw that they had driven into wonderfully furnished house lit up beautifully by several lights. This must be Saitou's associate's house, Kaoru decided.

They were greeted by the housekeeper who told them that the party had already moved out onto the beach and that most of the guests had arrived. So they moved through the silent house towards the far away laughter and to join the rest of the party. When they reached the beach, Saitou was greeted by hugs from the men there; he seemed very popular among them. Kaoru liked the party better than the last one because everyone here appeared much more relaxed here. It was not one of those formal, glittering parties which made her uptight.

After the men were done with the greets and hugs, they turned their gazes to Kaoru and Kaoru thought she might freeze up. Amazingly, she managed to smile at them warmly and greeted them with a friendly, "Hello."

Saitou put his hand gently onto the small of her back and ushered her closer to the group and introduced her.

"This is Kamiya Kaoru," he said, "She is a Medical student at Tokyo University."

The men grinned at her and the only odd one out; a tall handsome Caucasian man held his hand out to her. Kaoru grabbed his hand and shook it happily. They were very nice to her indeed. But why did Saitou even bother to mention that she was a Medical student?

"I'm Henrik Schneider," the blond man said, speaking in perfect Japanese, smiling at her mischievously, "your host for this evening. And I suppose that you are Saitou's date?"

"Yes," Kaoru replied, smiling back at him, "thank you so much for holding such a magnificent party, Henrik."

"You are welcomed, my dear," he said warmly, "now, why don't I show you to the refreshment stands? I made all the food myself!" He held his had out to her again.

Kaoru hesitated before taking his hand, she turned to look at Saitou but found him to be dragged away by the other men, engaged in a conversation. He was definitely too occupied to bother with her now. Plus, she didn't want to appear too dependent on him; like a small puppy following its owner around.

Kaoru put her hand firmly into Henrik's and said, "Okay, show me all the wonders that you made for tonight."

* * *

Saitou watched Kaoru being led away by Henrik and suddenly he couldn't concentrate in the conversation anymore. But he really shouldn't worry because he knew Henrik for a very long time and he also knew that Henrik was a serial flirt with impeccable charms. And now, Henrik was just doing what he always does, unleashing the full force of the Schneider charisma onto the beautiful Kaoru while he showed to her the delicious delights and urging her gesticulatingly to try all of them. Saitou smirked; or maybe Henrik was just trying to show off his manly, culinary skills.

"What do you find so amusing, Saitou?" came a low, familiar female voice.

Saitou turned around to see Tokio standing behind him, her long brown hair let down loosely around her shoulders and a hand placed confidently on her hip. She was wearing a dark purple mini-dress, holding a tropical drink in her other hand. Her hazel eyes were locked onto his and Saitou could still see the bitterness within them. The men who were previously talking to Saitou stopped their conversations awkwardly and disappeared quickly. They knew that it was time to move away.

"What are you doing here?" Saitou asked once all of them were gone.

Tokio ignored his question and turned her eyes to Kaoru and Schneider before remarking caustically, "So that is your new toy for now? She has barely reached puberty. It seems to me that your standards have lowered Saitou, dear."

"Don't call me 'dear'," Saitou said in a cold voice, his eyes turning hard, "and you keep your comments about Kaoru to yourself."

"So her name is Kaoru?" asked Tokio, walking closer to Saitou her hips swaying seductively. "It suits her perfectly. A girly name for a girly girl like her."

Saitou turned his angry eyes on Tokio before growling, "I told you to keep your comments to yourself because I obviously think differently."

"What!" exclaimed Tokio, "You…"

Saitou raised his hand to silence her. "Don't make a scene here. If you want to talk, let's go somewhere else."

Saitou took Tokio's elbow and moved away from the party. Some people looked their way and began to whisper but others couldn't care less.

* * *

Kaoru watched Saitou walked away with a beautiful brunette and now she couldn't see them anywhere. Where had they gone to and what are they doing? Kaoru began to panic.

Then, someone touched her back lightly and Kaoru turned around to see Henrik smiling at her.

"Don't worry, Kaoru." He said. "He'll be back soon."

Kaoru turned her attention back to Henrik reluctantly and asked, "Who is that woman with him? She looks familiar."

"That is his ex-girlfriend, Tokio." Henrik replied, "I'm sure that you must have seen her somewhere, she is a famous singer here in Japan."

"Yes." Kaoru agreed distractedly, numbed. She remembered the face that she saw on the CD case Misao showed her. _Tokio…_ The wonderful evening turned sour with Saitou going off with his former girlfriend and she was stuck here with a man she barely knew, surrounded by all the other wealthy strangers.

Henrik took her hand and squeezed it tightly, trying to comfort her. "I'll introduce you to some of my friends and let's forget about Saitou for now."

Kaoru nodded, forcing a fake smile to form on her lips and allowed him to pull her away to meet his friends but inside, she was crumbling.

Henrik smiled all too cheerfully and hoped that Saitou don't do anything silly because he knew that the woman beside him was hurting.

* * *

They were in a secluded area, away from any spectators. Saitou was growing impatient. If he knew that Tokio was going to be here, he would have never brought Kaoru. Tokio had always been trouble; when they were in a relationship, she was so clingy and possessive, always getting jealous so easily but yet she was the one who put an end to the relationship. She had tried to get Saitou jealous by messing around with one of his clients. Then, Saitou took the chance and broke up with her.

_And, now this._ Saitou sighed.

"Who is she?" demanded Tokio, "Some teenager you found on the way here?"

"I don't see why we are having this conversation." Saitou said. "I thought I made it very clear, we are over and who I see now is not your concern."

Tokio scoffed. "Right. I can tell that she is different, you know. And you've never defended anyone like this before. You are obviously besotted, Saitou."

Saitou looked at the woman standing in front of him, measuring her words, was what she said, true? Was he really besotted? He did not want to get attach to anyone again but it was true that he enjoyed Kaoru's company and her warm, innocent smiles affected him more than he liked. But he didn't want anyone to get close to him anymore.

Saitou took a deep breath. "I am not besotted with her, whatever you may think. I like her, that's all."

Tokio's smile curled up in asly smile. "That's all?"

Saitou remained silent but noticed that Tokio was coming closer and closer to him with the same sly smile on her face.

* * *

Henrik was laughing at one of the jokes that one of his friends had just told to the whole crowd of them. Then, he turned around to see Kaoru's reaction to the joke but didn't see her at where she was standing a moment ago.

"Kaoru?"

She was no where in sight.

It all happened so fast that Saitou was caught off guard. All of a sudden, Tokio's arms were around him, her body pressed into his and she was kissing him passionately. It was all a shock and when Saitou came to his senses and pushed her off, he noticed that she was laughing. She had just been shoved off roughly onto sand and she was laughing?

That was when Saitou realized that there was an extra shadow on the ground other than Tokio and his own.

He raised his eyes slowly to the owner of the new shadow and found a stricken Kaoru standing there, shaking and her eyes wide with…sadness.

"Kaoru…" he murmured.

And before he could say anything else, Kaoru shook her hand, turned around and ran away quickly.

Saitou looked down Tokio, who was still smiling. He glared at her and ran after Kaoru.

* * *

_I am not besotted wit her…I like her, that's all._

Those words kept echoing in Kaoru's head as she ran, the tears in her eyes blinding her. She didn't care where she was going or what was going to happen. Or the fact that everything

happening around her was so dramatic and surreal. All she wanted to do now was to get away from Saitou and his gorgeous ex-girlfriend. She was kissing him and he didn't push her off immediately.

In her distress, Kaoru didn't notice that she had run all the way from the beach, through Henrik's house to where Saitou had parked his Mercedes Benz. How could he do this to her? How could he say that he liked and that is all? How could he make her feel so small and so pathetic?

Kaoru let the gathering tears in eyes pour out and she sobbed, her whole body shaking, her legs giving her away beneath and she slumped to the ground.

"Kaoru…"

Kaoru stopped crying and looked up to see Saitou standing in front of her, his dark shadow hovering over her. Kaoru looked into his eyes defiantly and sniffed, trying very hard to calm her own angry, roving mind. She refused to speak and she looked down again. A long moment of silence passed through them and Saitou just remained standing there. Neither of them uttering a word.

Finally, Kaoru gathered her skirts and got up quietly, her back straight and her chin held up high. She leveled her eyes with Saitou's before speaking in an equally calm voice, "I would like you to take me home now."

Without warning, Saitou grabbed her shoulders and crushed her against him, his hand smoothing down her back comfortingly. Kaoru stiffened and remained completely still in his embrace, then, firmly she pushed him away. "Please, just take me home."

Saitou looked at her, his amber eyes staring into her blue ones searchingly. His hand slide down to her waist and shifted her closer to him, his other hand cupped her face tenderly, his thumb brushing her tears away gently.

"I know that you are angry with me." Saitou said, never breaking their eye contact. "And I am sorry. The woman you saw just now is my ex-girlfriend. Her name is Tokio."

Kaoru could feel the anger in her melting away and she fought to stay angry at him, she looked back deeply into his eyes, forcing herself not to look away after what she heard him said. If she looked away now, she would appear more vulnerable than ever.

"I didn't kiss her-"

"But!" Kaoru exclaimed, interrupting him.

Saitou touched her lips to silence her, then, he said seriously, "I didn't. She just grabbed me and kissed me all of a sudden. I don't have any feelings for her and I am not with her. I am with you now."

Kaoru could feel her eyes watering again, her heart was betraying herself. She wanted so much to accept Saitou's explanation and to throw herself at him. She gathered her last vestiges of self control and spoke.

"But you said that you like me and that is all."

Saitou chuckled and bend down to burry his face at the base of her neck, breathing in her intoxicating jasmine fragrance. Then, he pressed soft kisses along her collar bone before murmuring, "I like you, Kaoru. But I want you, too."

Kaoru gave into him and turned fully into his embrace, pressing her body against his eagerly but she couldn't stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks. She couldn't believe that she was really doing this; she had succumbed to his enchantment, not caring about being careful or protecting herself. All she knew now was to be with the man she loved. She wanted to hold him close and to never let him go.

Then, she let out a small yelp when Saitou bit the top of her breast playfully. He then tilted her chin and kissed her hungrily, his arms tightly around her, his tongue playing with hers adroitly, drugging her completely with the passion of his kiss.

When he finally lifted his mouth from hers, she looked up at him dazedly and he was smiling roguishly at her.

"Come," he said, taking her hand and leading her to his car.

Kaoru just followed him and didn't ask any questions. She had no doubt in where they were going.

* * *

The moment the front door closed, they were kissing each other again. Saitou had scooped her up in his arms, pressing her back against her wall. He was kissing and touching her everywhere and for the first time Kaoru didn't mind. She liked his feverish kisses and touches and she found herself wanting more. It was when Saitou carried her to the bedroom that Kaoru begin to doubt what she was doing.

She moved away from Saitou, catching her breath after all the breathtaking kisses.

"Saitou," she said, "I don't think I know…"

Saitou stopped her from continuing by kissing her lightly on the lips. "Don't worry, I'll guide you."

Kaoru widened her eyes. Saitou obviously didn't know that she have not done this before. Then, she watched Saitou take her wrist and placed her hand onto the front of his shirt gently.

"Saitou," Kaoru said again, "I was trying to tell you that I'm not all that tired yet."

"Good," he whispered, pulling her onto his lap and began to sensually trace the folds of her ear with his tongue. "Because I'm not going to let you go to sleep just yet."

"What I meant was-" Kaoru gasped as his tongue traveled down her neck. Weakly, she leaned into him and felt the bold evidence of his rising passion pressing against her. "What I meant," she said again in a tremulous voice, "was that I'm ready for…for bed yet."

Saitou turned his head up and whispered into her ear. "I've waited an eternity for you, Kaoru. Don't ask me to wait any longer."

These words banished any thoughts of the rightness of what she was doing in Kaoru's mind and she didn't protest when Saitou pulled on her wrist again, placing her hand on the front of his shirt once more.

"Look at me," he coaxed gently and Kaoru lifted her shining blue eyes to his. "We are going to do this together. Unbutton my shirt."

Kaoru looked at her hand on his shirt and in a moment, all her fears disappeared. She touched her trembling hands to the first button. It seemed like forever for the button to be freed and before she knew it she was working on the second button. Everything was in a daze.

Then, she unbuttoned the third one.

Then another button….

And another...

* * *

A/N: There, another completed chapter. I'm sorry it took a while but I work on this with all that I've got, I just really want to write a good romance. Do review and let me know what you think about this chapter or the characters or whatever you have to say. 


	14. Parting Paths

Note: Hey there all my darling readers. Thank you all so very much for the wonderful reviews and comments you left me. I really do appreciate and I am sorry about the delay of this chapter. I hope you like it, I am trying to put more depth into my writing and to improve for the all of you. Happy reading!

I decided that I wouldn't write a lemon and so if you are expecting one, I'm sorry to disappoint you.

* * *

**Chapter 14: Parting Paths**

When Saitou watched Kaoru sleep that night, he finally fully understood why he was in danger. He had never lost control of himself like that before, nor did he ever rush a woman into bed like he did to Kaoru. What Tokio had said was true; Kaoru was really different and no matter how much he hated to admit it, he was becoming too attached to her. The last thing Saitou wanted was to become dependent on anyone again. He valued his freedom and he did not like commitment or having his normal routine of life being interrupted.

Kaoru was lying in his arms, deeply asleep, her breathing steady and barely audible. The aroma of jasmine still surrounded her and Saitou knew that it was another thing that he had become attached to. Her skin turned out to be as milky as it looked and she was completely inexperienced and innocent, it was only when he took her that he realized that she was a virgin; he shall ask her about that when she wakes up. Why didn't she tell him earlier? Then, he realized that he didn't really give her that much of a chance.

He watched her sleep peacefully and decided that he had to stop this insanity soon. He had to stop seeing her, stop wanting her and stop giving her false hope. He could not give her the wrong idea about what he has to offer. He was not ready to commit and he still wasn't sure if it was love. He did not want to fall in love, let alone get married or have children of his own. He liked life the way it was, just him, his job and his friends. Attachments and love can only cause pain and suffering.

Saitou sighed and concluded that his decision would be the best for him and that he would have to carry it out as soon as possible.

* * *

Kaoru woke up to the sun shining over her face and she turned her head to meet Saitou's eyes looking at her. His expression was unreadable and Kaoru noticed that he was already dressed. It made her feel even more self conscious than ever. The memory from last night came back to her and her face flushed an adorable pink. She remembered their intimate touches and kisses and the words Saitou whispered to her in the midst of their passion; Kaoru decided that losing her virginity wasn't was awful as she thought it would be, especially when she was in love with him. Kaoru looked at Saitou again, searching his gaze. Did he notice it?

Saitou smiled at her. "You're finally awake, sleepy head."

Kaoru blushed and said, "Is it okay if I take a shower first?"

Saitou smiled lazily at her again. "Go ahead."

Kaoru flushed a deeper red and she ran to the bathroom with incredible speed that she could hear Saitou's laughter rumbling after her. It didn't matter if he had already seen her naked, she was still not very comfortable about it.

She turned on the water and washed herself, unable to believe what she had done last night. Oddly, she didn't regret it but a part of her heart was still hurt, she still didn't know if Saitou feel the same way as she does.

When she came out from the shower dressed in her change of clothes of casual jeans and t-shirt, Saitou was still sitting at the chair where he was before she entered the shower.

He motioned her to come closer and she did, she went to stand next to him at his chair and his hand grasped hers softly and he looked up at her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

"Tell you what?" Kaoru retorted, pretending that she didn't know what he was talking about.

"You know damn well what."

"Actually," Kaoru said, "I forgot about it."

"Kaoru…" he warned.

"Okay," she said, "I didn't tell you because the subject never came up and I didn't know how to say it." She turned her face away.

Saitou remained silent.

"Would you have changed you mind if you knew?" Kaoru asked.

Saitou looked up at her again. "No, I wouldn't. If I knew, I could have been gentler with you."

Kaoru smiled at him and Saitou found himself smiling back.

He coughed uncomfortably. "Shall we have some breakfast?"

Kaoru frowned at his sudden change of attitude but didn't say anything. She followed him into the dining room, watching him closely. His had this poker face on and she couldn't see what he was feeling at all. Why is he so unpredictable?

They sat down around the lovely wooden table and they ate a simple breakfast. Milk, toast, eggs and some bacon. Saitou was silent and Kaoru did not know what to say too. She dared not say a word. The dining room was cozy and the sun was shining peacefully into the room, everything seemed so serene and perfect except fore this awkward silence between she and Saitou.

Kaoru bit at her toast without tasting it at all, she tried not to look at Saitou as much as possible because she was afraid that the fear and the insecurity in her eyes might show. She didn't want to seem weak to him.

They finished their breakfast soon enough and soon, they are walking out of the house and to the car, everything happened so fast and Kaoru was in a daze. She was already beginning to feel a little bit sick in her chest. They were silent most of the time during the ride back to Tokyo and Saitou seemed to be in deep thought and Kaoru kept her face to the window. It was nothing like the peaceful ride that they had two days ago.

When they finally arrived in front of her apartment building, Kaoru decided that she wouldn't say anything if he doesn't. Before she got out of the car, Saitou spoke.

"Kaoru, did you take any precautions against the possible consequences of last night?"

Kaoru opened her mouth and closed it again after a few moments, she could feel the blood rushing to her face. She shook her head dumbly.

She looked at Saitou, he was looking at her levelly and she sensed that her answer irritated him, but his voice was calmly unemotional. "If there should be any consequences, I want you to let me know. Don't try to face it alone. Will you promise to let me know?"

Kaoru was too embarrassed to speak. She nodded and quickly got out of the car. She walked towards her apartment and before she reached the front door to the building, he had already driven away in his car.

* * *

Misao was not at home when she entered their apartment. Kaoru carelessly dropped her beg on the floor and sat down on the sofa clumsily. She was tired and restless. Today was Sunday and she still had to work tonight. Kaoru sighed and glanced at the clock which hung above the television on the wall.

If Saitou wanted to reach her, he could always call her. _"If there should be any consequences, I want you to let me know." Let me know… _The last three words revolved continuously in her brain. Why had he made it sound as if they wouldn't be talking to each other unless she needed to reach him to tell him that she was pregnant?

In a way Kaoru felt like something that had been used and then thrown away. They had spent time together with each other not for very long but somehow, she felt so close to him- surely he felt close to her too. Surely he couldn't intend to just walk away and forget about her.

And what if she was pregnant? Kaoru couldn't bare the thought of that. If she remembered her dates right, her chances of getting pregnant was low. But she had to make sure. She glanced at the clock again.

It was almost three o'clock. She still had time. Kaoru decided that she would cycle to a pharmacy and buy a pregnancy test and after that, she would go to work. She stood up from the sofa and picked up her bag, fishing out her dirty clothes from the weekend and threw them into her laundry bag. She walked to the door bravely and opened it. Off she went to buy that pregnancy test. _Ahh…_

* * *

**Monday night at The Iwasaki's**

Tae watched Kaoru worked and she knew that there was something 'off' about Kaoru today. She didn't seem to have as much energy and sometimes she make mistakes about the orders and her movements had become clumsy.

She called at Kaoru to come over to her and for the first few times she called her, Kaoru didn't even notice her. There was definitely something wrong.

Kaoru blinked and snapped herself out of her reverie. Work was going at a wrong direction tonight and she was ashamed of herself. She did not put all of her effort today, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't seem to be able to concentrate completely.

Turned out that she didn't buy the pregnancy test on Saturday. She had walked into the pharmacy and wondered forever at the different brands of pregnancy test and in the end, she left the shop without purchasing one. Partly it was because she was afraid and partly it was because she knew that this kind of things make mistakes sometimes. There was no way she could make a mistake, she had to be sure. She had decided that she would go for a check up at a private clinic, somewhere that she could get confirmed answers.

She walked towards Tae in a daze and stopped in front of her, her head bowed.

"I'm sorry Tae," she said, "I will try to pick myself up for the rest of the night."

Tae shook her head and waved her apology away easily. "I'm not worried about that Kaoru! I'm worried about you, is everything okay?"

Kaoru nodded.

"Well, you certainly don't look like it. I know that even when you are tired, you are still alert. However, something seemed to be bothering you tonight. It is only seven thirty and you've made more than three mistakes with the orders. You never make mistakes like that before."

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

Tae shook her head again. "No, I told you, I'm not angry. I'm just worried about you, what's wrong? Maybe I can help you."

Kaoru looked at Tae and felt the temptation to tell her everything that had happened but yet something was holding her back. What she was about to tell her was no joke, and if it gets out, imagine what her father will do to her. She couldn't even bare to imagine that. But, she needed to let it out, and Tae was a motherly figure to her.

Kaoru leaned close to Tae and whispered in a very low voice. "You must promise that you won't tell anyone about what I am about to tell you. You must tell no one."

Tae hesitated and then nodded her head firmly. "I will tell no one. I promise."

"Okay."

With that Kaoru pulled Tae to the changing room for waitresses and when she was sure that no one else was in the room, she began talking.

"I may be pregnant." Kaoru said.

Tae's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock.

"But I am not sure. I have to find out and I don't want to use the pregnancy tests sold outside because those things can be inaccurate."

Kaoru looked at Tae, who was obviously still in shock and waited patiently for her to register what she had told her.

"Who's the asshole who did this to you?" Tae asked, annoyance obvious on her face.

Kaoru shrugged and remained silent.

"All right," Tae said finally, "I understand if you do not want to tell me. But Kaoru, it is very important to have protected sex, and you of all people should know that. I thought you are smart Kaoru!"

Kaoru remained silent still and looked down, her eyes focused on the floor. What Tae said was true. How could she be so stupid?

"I won't lecture you anymore," Tae sighed, "how about this, I will bring you to this gynaecologist that I use go to and we can find out if you are pregnant okay? He is very strict about confidentiality with his patients and so everything is going to be okay."

Kaoru nodded and smiled gratefully at Tae. "Thank you, Tae. When will we go?"

"How about now?" Tae asked, "Just the thought of you may be pregnant drives me nuts. Let's go find out now."

Kaoru nodded, she herself was going crazy at that thought. Just the thought of it make her heart beat at rate that she never knew that was possible.

So they took off their aprons and put their long winter coats over their uniforms. Tae went to the front to tell them that they will be off for a while and then they walked out of the Iwasaki's through the back door.

Kaoru got in beside Tae in the car and through the ride, they were silent. Kaoru was grateful for Tae's quiet understanding. She didn't pester her about what happened and agreed to help her just like that. Kaoru needed all the courage and support she can get now and she almost wished that Misao was here with her as well.

* * *

Thankfully, there weren't many people in the clinic that night. And even if there were a few women waiting around, they were people that Kaoru didn't know.

She and Tae sat at the waiting area and they remained silent and Kaoru's hands were shaking harder and harder each time it came closer to her turn. Tae grabbed her hand and smiled reassuringly at her.

"Don't worry," she said gently, "If you want someone to go in with you. I will accompany you."

"Thank you," Kaoru said, her voice barely audible, "please do."

When the nurse finally called her name, she and Tae walked into the doctor's office, Tae's arm linked with hers, supporting her.

Inside the office, a man with glasses sat behind an imposing wooden desk. He looked at both Kaoru and Tae curiously and smiled friendly at them.

"Now, what can I do for you?" he said.

Kaoru spoke up quickly. "I'm here to check if I'm pregnant."

The doctor nodded understandingly and looked at Tae. "Is this young lady your sister?"

Tae shook her head. "No, we are just good friends."

"In that case, is it okay if you would kindly wait outside? I will just do a few tests here on Kamiya-san."

Tae stood up from her chair and looked at Kaoru worriedly before walking out of the office.

The doctor turned his full attention to Kaoru. "Now, now. Why are you two looking so glum? It's going to be okay, Kamiya-san."

When Kaoru came out of the doctor's office, Tae was looking at her expectantly, her eyes as big as saucers.

"Well…are you pregnant?" Tae asked.

Kaoru sat down beside Tae and sighed heavily. "I don't know. The test results haven't come out yet. We'll have to wait."

"For how long?"

"Not too long, I think." Kaoru replied, "The next time the nurse calls me, it will be my test results."

"Ah."

So they sat there in silence again.

After what it seemed like an eternity, the kindly nurse in the pink uniform called at her with a bright smile on her face. Kaoru felt her breath caught up in her throat, she walked towards the reception in a daze and the nurse handed her a piece of paper.

"The results are negative, my dear, you don't have to worry anymore." The nurse told her kindly.

Kaoru breathed in deeply and just the feeling of relief overwhelmed her with such happiness that she couldn't speak for a moment. She took the piece of paper from the nurse wordlessly, a big smile plastered on her face and she walked towards Tae, who was smiling at her with equal happiness.

So, she is not pregnant! If the results are positive, she wouldn't know what to do, especially the man who did this to her seemed not to have any interest in her anymore.

Kaoru and Tae walked out the clinic and for a while, they didn't know what to say to each other. It was already late and they both didn't feel like going back to The Iwasaki's.

"How about let's go to a nearby café for something hot to drink and then go home?" Tae suggested.

Kaoru nodded. "Okay, that sounds like a good idea." This whole episode was too much for her and a relaxing hot drink sound good to her. She will think about her and Saitou's relationship later.

* * *

For weeks, Kaoru was in a pathetic state and she couldn't help it. No matter how much she wanted to recover from everything quickly, she couldn't. She wished that she didn't love Saitou and isn't yearning for him the way she is now. She wished that she didn't enjoy that night with him; now, every kiss, every heated sweet-nothing he had whispered into her ear couldn't stop replaying in her head.

She waited for him to call, rushing to pick up the phone every time it rings. But it was never him. He didn't want her anymore and just the thought of it made her cried herself to sleep so many nights.

To Kaoru, the days passed in a blur and the people around her noticed the changes in her. Her smiles no longer reached her eyes and she rarely talk that much anymore. She went to her classes as usual, did every assignment thrown at her, did her work at the Iwasaki's and went back to her apartment and often, straight into her room, closing the door shut behind her. Misao had asked her several times what was wrong but she couldn't bring herself to pour it all out, it was already a miracle that she still had the strength and will-power for her to continue to do the things she need to do everyday. So, she always smiled at Misao, shook her head gently and told her that nothing was wrong.

The only thing that she stopped doing was spending her time after classes at Shougo's art studio at the University, she wanted to put a wall between herself and Saitou and anything associated with him. She called Shougo up and politely told him that she couldn't paint as usual at his studio for a while and that she was going to try working on some of the paintings during her free time at her apartment.

But any free moment that Kaoru spent at home did not include painting or studying for her classes or anything useful for that matter. The time was spent with her lying on her bed in her room and staring onto the ceiling with a blank face. It had reached a point where she ceased to cry.

Finally, one morning Kaoru got up from her sleeping position on her bed and pulled back the curtains, allowing her room to bask in the morning sunshine. She surveyed her room and stacked some of the books back in order, tidying things up here and there.

Then, she walked out of her room and into the bathroom, where she stared into the mirror for a long time at her reflection. Her eyes had a dull look in them and she hated it, she couldn't remember the last time she had a hair cut but thank goodness that her hair still looked okay. There were dark shadows under her eyes and she knew that it was due to her lack of sleep.

Kaoru took a deep breath and decided that she will do something different today, she usually don't wear make up unless to formal occasions and now, she was going to put an end to that. Most of the girls her age wear make up and even she knew that there is huge difference between a made up face and a bare face like hers. With make up on, you can cover so many things that you don't want other people to see, and you can definitely enhance your features.

So today, Kaoru was going to made herself up, hoping that she will feel better. She wanted to get out of this cloudy and heavy mood of hers right now. She needed to start living again and to focus on herself again and thinking about Saitou will just not do.

By the time she was done with her make up and all dressed up, sitting at the dining table sipping at her green tea, she heard Misao's shriek and the sound of her crashing out of the bed, and she chuckled. Misao was always very clumsy in the morning and most of the time she ignored the constant beeping of her alarm clock and continued sleeping.

Misao rushed out of her room and stared at Kaoru in shock. "Kaoru-chan?"

Kaoru smiled at her. "Good morning, Misao-chan."

"Since when do you wake up so early?" Misao exclaimed, already dashing to the bathroom.

Kaoru laughed. "You better hurry, or you'll be late. I'll go first, okay? I'll see you there."

"Okay!" Misao shouted from inside the bathroom, and Kaoru laughed again.

Kaoru looked at herself in the mirror again before opening the front door. She had pulled her hair up in an elegant French twist today, and beautiful ear-rings made of blue crystals dangled at her ears. She wore a frilly white blouse, complete with a clean-cut black trench coat and long shapely black pants. Kaoru smiled into the mirror, deciding that she looked smart and sophisticated, less like a child people think her to be. She picked up her bag and walked out of the door, telling herself that she would concentrate in her classes today and maybe check in with Shougo and apologise for her absence.

* * *

Saitou had his reading glasses on and he was staring at a document held in his hand only that, he wasn't really looking at the document actually. The vision of Kaoru's bright, innocent blue eyes kept appearing in his mind and he couldn't seem to be able to shake it off.

Ever since they both parted their ways that Saturday, he had been thinking about her, little things like how she looked at him or the way she bit at her lip when she is nervous kept coming into his mind, and he didn't like it.

In a way, he felt guilty for what he did to Kaoru. What happened on Saturday and the exchange between them was an unofficial 'break-up', he knew very well that he did that even though he didn't say the words. So far, she hadn't contacted him and he hoped that it is because she is really not pregnant, not because she is too afraid to tell him. And it wasn't her fault too. Just like what he said that night, 'We are going to do this together', he had a part in it too, and so he couldn't put the blame completely onto Kaoru.

He had done what he wanted. He had finished everything with her and it was over. He was most likely not going to see her again and she definitely wouldn't want to see him again after what happened. She definitely deserves someone better than him. Someone who would be there for her, someone who wouldn't leave her, someone who was ready to commit himself to her and Saitou knew that he was not that man.

Or at least that was what he thought. His thoughts were all messed up and suddenly, he didn't know what he thinks anymore.

Then, a knock was heard on the door and his secretary came in. "Imumaro-san and his wife are waiting outside for you, sir."

Saitou nodded absently. "I'll be out soon."

His secretary went out and Saitou got up from his seat, dismissing Kaoru from his thoughts. _She definitely deserves someone better. _

He walked out of his office to see his clients.

* * *

_So far so good…_Kaoru thought as she sat in lecture theatre listening to the professor showing them several slides and explaining everything to them, occasionally calling on students to answer questions. Kaoru noticed that there were less and less students in her classes and she knew that most of them had disappeared off to do their shifts and earn their further points at the hospitals they were assigned to. But since she transferred in from an American university, she had to earn her points from scratch, so it was a while before she can start doing her shifts. She was feeling better together, thought not completely recovered and happy, but happier. That was a start.

She took notes diligently and listened to her professors attentively and tried to interact as much possible with the people in her classes. She found that focusing her mind on somewhere else and talking to people helped and she was determined that she won't be as vulnerable as before.

At the end of the lesson before lunch break, Professor Suzukaze asked her to stay back and so she did. She wondered what he wanted this time round.

"Kamiya-san, I'm informing you that you have earned all the points that you needed to start doing your shifts at hospitals. After going through all your grades and performance with the other professors, we've decided to assign you to your father's hospital." He told her.

Kaoru's eyes widened. _Her father's hospital?_

"Sir, is it possible if I do my shifts at another possible?" Kaoru asked.

Professor Suzukaze narrowed his eyes at her and spoke firmly, "It is decided and I assure you that it has nothing to do with the fact that your father is the administrator at the hospital. You do know how students are assigned to hospitals, right? Students with good grades and good performance are assigned to good hospitals and students who didn't do well during their school year have to do more work at school but get assigned to less recognized hospitals."

Kaoru nodded to show him that she was following what he was saying.

"Your grades and your performance, I have to admit, are pleasing and you should be glad that you've earned enough good graces to be assigned to your father's hospital. It is one of the best hospitals in Tokyo. So do you want to be reassigned again?"

Kaoru shook her head and let a reluctant smile curve on her lips. Professor Suzukaze actually said that her grades and performance during class are pleasing. And he said it right to her face! _Maybe he isn't as bad as I thought…_

"You are to start your shifts tomorrow morning, report to the hospital at eight in the morning and the staff will tell you what to do."

"Yes, sir." Kaoru said.

"All right, you can go for your lunch break now." Professor said, dismissing her.

"Thank you, Professor." Kaoru said gratefully and she saw a ghost of a smile on his lips before it disappeared immediately again.

Kaoru walked out of the lecture theatre, thinking about starting her shifts at her father's hospital when someone tapped her hard on the head with a book. She turned around, ready to confront the person when she saw a grinning, bouncing Misao in front of her.

"Kaoru-chan!" Misao screeched, jumping onto her and engulfing her in a bear hug. "You are finally back!"

Kaoru smiled and hugged Misao back. "Yeah, I'm trying to be okay."

Misao let go of her and frowned at her. "I was so worried about you and you were so silent, not saying anything whenever I ask you what is wrong. Are you sure you are okay now?"

Kaoru nodded at her. "I'm trying to be okay, I cannot stay depressed forever, I have a life to live and responsibilities to answer to, and I have to be okay. I am sorry I ignored you, I was not myself and I just found myself unable to speak like I used to."

"It's okay," Misao said, "I understand and I don't blame you. When you are ready to tell me about it, I'll hear you out. How about let's go for lunch now?"

Kaoru smiled gratefully at her and nodded. " Okay, let's go to the Iwasaki's. Oh yeah, what's up with you and Soujiro?"

Misao blushed. "I'll tell you once we get there."

"Okay." Kaoru said.

So they walked towards the Iwasaki's, and it reminded Kaoru very much of the first time they ate lunch at the Iwasaki's and the encounter with Soujiro. Those were sweet memories and all of a sudden, the sun seemed to shining brighter than ever. _I am going to be okay…_she told herself.

Misao and Kaoru walked into the Iwasaki's and were welcomed by the warm smiles of Tae.

"Hello Tae!" Kaoru said, "Could we please have a table for two?"

"Of course," Tae replied, guiding them to a table beside the window.

"How are you, Kaoru?" Tae asked, searching for any form of emotion on Kaoru's face.

Kaoru smiled. "I'm feeling much better now. I've decided to get out of my depressing mode and focus on life again…or at least try to."

Tae nodded encouragingly at Kaoru. "I'm sure you can."

"Sorry about not being myself the past few weeks." Kaoru apologized.

"It's all right," Tae said, waving Kaoru's apology away, "Now, what would you two ladies like for lunch?"

They both asked for what they wanted and watched Tae walked to the kitchen with their orders.

Kaoru turned her attention back to Misao, she leaned towards the table and asked, "I see that Soujiro doesn't work here anymore, has he gone back to America? Everything okay between the two of you?"

Misao smiled her brightest smile at her and Kaoru settled more comfortably into her chair to hear Misao's tale. Something good must have happened between them or Misao wouldn't be grinning like a Cheshire cat at her.

"Shoot." Kaoru said laughingly.

Soujiro had flown back to America a week ago and Misao had been there at the airport to see him off. Tsubame was there with her and everything was all right. They both knew that continuing their relationship like this would be hard and so they kept their senses and agreed that they wouldn't make any promises to each other.

"He said that we will keep in touch through the internet and the phone, but he said that we will never know what might happen in the future. And I agreed with him. Maybe I might meet someone else and maybe he will too. I am not sad, I think that it is good that it is this way because at least I still have a friend no matter what changed between us. We promised each other that we will keep in touch what happens and that we will keep each other up to date about what is happening between us…"

Kaoru nodded at her understandingly. "That is great. I think this arrangement is good too."

Then, Misao looked sad. "But I still feel sad sometimes when I think about the scene where he kissed me goodbye at the airport. He has to go back to complete his studies, and I have to be here. If only he is studying here…then such arrangements wouldn't be necessary…"

Kaoru reached for Misao's hand and held it comfortingly. "Don't think about it that way, Misao-chan. Just like he said, you never know what is in store for us in the future. Even if he found someone else first, you would too sooner or later. Don't think about it that way…I think that he is respecting you by telling you all that. Plus, you two promised each other to keep in touch right?"

Misao nodded sadly. "Yeah." And then she looked at Kaoru with hesitant eyes. "Is it okay if I ask you about what happened to you the past few weeks?"

Kaoru smiled soberly and sighed, nodding her head. "It's about time that I tell you too."

So she told Misao-chan everything. What happened at the party, who she met there, the scene with Tokio and what happened later at Saitou's beach house. Misao listened to her, her eyes and mouth widening sometimes at what she was hearing but she didn't interrupt. She let Kaoru tell her story without any distraction and by the end of it, Misao was near tears.

Kaoru laughed. "There is no need to cry, Misao-chan. I've cried enough for the both of us."

Misao ignored what Kaoru had said and was still taken aback by everything that had happened to Kaoru. "My gosh, that jerk."

Kaoru laughed again. "Yes, yes, he is a jerk but I can't exactly blame him no matter how much I want to. You can't force another person to feel the same way as you do. Love can't be forced."

Misao looked at Kaoru with serious and eyes as big as saucers and almost screamed, "Are you okay!"

Some of the people around looked at them with curious gazes and others with annoyance. Kaoru smiled at them in apology and turned back to Misao.

"Yes, Misao-chan. I'm trying to be okay now, I've spent too much time moping over him. Let's look on the bright side, at least I am not pregnant!"

The gloomy mood finally lightened and a giggle escaped from Misao. "Yeah, I can't imagine what will happen if you are really pregnant. I just can't imagine it."

Very soon they finished their lunch and paid the bill. Misao waited outside while Kaoru talked to Tae about resigning her position here as a waitress, telling her that she wouldn't be able to work there anymore since she is starting her shifts at the hospital tomorrow.

Then, Kaoru and Misao walked back to the University both with a lighter mood after sharing the things that have been haunting their minds. Kaoru thought about visiting Shougo at the art studio in the afternoon.

_I will finish the paintings this time round but that will be it, _Kaoru thought, _then, I will concentrate on my medical career._ She was not going to throw all the knowledge she learnt all those years just to pursue her art, even if medicine wasn't her passion, she wanted at least to be able to save lives. That was what she was going to concentrate on now. No more emotional breakdowns or confusions like the one she had faced so many times before. Now, she was going to think for herself.

* * *

Here's the end of the chapter. I hope you like it, please leave reviews to let me know what you think. I apologise for any mistakes or typos. Feedback is most appreciated! 


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